Six years after the Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute opened, a $48 million expansion to provide additional cancer services is underway. The health system recently broke ground on a new state-of-the-art proton therapy facility, becoming the second site in Pennsylvania to offer the innovative radiation therapy to cancer patients.
Construction on the 8,000-square-foot expansion began in September to add proton therapy to the Cancer Institute’s broad array of radiation-therapy services. Expected to be completed by fall 2021, it will be the first and only proton therapy center in Central Pennsylvania, minimizing the number of people needing to travel outside Lancaster County for advanced oncology care. Currently, Penn Medicine’s Roberts Proton Therapy Center, part of the Abramson Cancer Center, is the only other proton therapy center in the state.
The Cancer Institute is also expanding the availability of its general research and clinical trials to patients, offering the opportunity to try new and effective treatments that could potentially improve their condition while taking part in vital research that can benefit many future patients.
“As part of Penn Medicine, our patients benefit from the collaborative efforts of experts here at the Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute and at Penn Medicine’s Abramson Cancer Center—one of the nation’s foremost leaders in cancer research, patient care, and education,” said Jan Bergen, President & CEO, Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health.
The Cancer Institute continues to enhance its personalized medicine services by offering more precision radiation approaches, expanded precision diagnostics, and additional precision treatment and prevention methods.
“The combination goes beyond traditional manners of understanding and responding to disease,” said Randall A. Oyer, MD, Medical Director, Ann B. Barshinger Cancer Institute. “Here, physicians pursue a therapy or treatment protocol based on a patient’s molecular profile, to minimize harmful side effects and to achieve a more successful outcome.”
To learn more about the Cancer Institute expansion and proton therapy, visit LGHealth.org.