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ACMH Hospital and AHN Cancer Institute Announce Opening of Expanded Laube Cancer Center
Thursday, January 19, 2023

ACMH Hospital, Allegheny Health Network (AHN) Cancer Institute, announce opening of expanded, renovated Laube Cancer Center

KITTANNING, PA. (Jan. 19, 2023) - The Laube Cancer Center at Armstrong County Memorial Hospital (ACMH) has recently completed a year-long, $8 million expansion and renovation project that greatly enhances patients’ access to and experience with the hospital’s cancer programs in a beautiful, state-of-the-art facility. Now open to patients, the center is directed by physicians from the Allegheny Health Network (AHN) Cancer Institute and staffed by a team of highly trained ACMH nurses and medical assistants who are dedicated to providing exceptional cancer care.

“We are thrilled to announce the completion of this much-needed transformation of our cancer center,” said John Lewis, ACMH Hospital President and CEO. “As more and more people are turning to ACMH as their trusted healthcare provider and demand for our center’s radiation and oncology services continues to grow, this new facility provides us with the capacity to meet those needs at the highest level for current and future generations.” 

The ACMH Laube Cancer Center expansion includes: additional exam rooms, physician offices, and support service offices; a new canopied entranceway designed for easier wayfinding to treatment areas; an open connection to the upper floor through a two-story gallery that provides abundant natural daylight, and a spacious waiting area designed to maximize patient and family comfort.  

“This endeavor would not be possible without many partners coming together to make it happen,” Lewis said. “From initial Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) grant funding to our community donors and our AHN Cancer Institute partners, the center’s revitalization is the result of many individuals and organizations coming together to ensure a vital future of cancer care in our region.”

The ACMH Laube Cancer Center, located in Kittanning, is the only comprehensive cancer treatment facility within Armstrong County.

David Bartlett, MD, Chair of AHN’s Cancer Institute, said care provided close to home is the ideal setting for every cancer patient and a core philosophy of AHN’s strategy for advancing cancer treatment throughout western Pennsylvania.

“A fundamental tenet of AHN and Highmark Health’s Living Health model is that patients should not need to travel great distances to receive comprehensive, world-class health services,” said Dr. Bartlett. “Our oncologists provide expert, compassionate care at many sites throughout western Pennsylvania, including ACMH, and we are delighted to now be able to do so for residents of Armstrong County and surrounding areas in this beautiful, new state-of-the-art facility, that offers the utmost in patient comfort and convenience.”

The new center will allow for a “more streamlined and efficient approach to cancer treatment,” according to Lewis. “We’ve created an environment that is supportive and healing, one that brings together a broad array of leading cancer experts to deliver the best care possible in the convenience and comfort of a close-to-home location.” 

The center’s clinical layout, now expanded to over 20,000 square feet, features larger IV therapy bays, minimizing noise and maximizing privacy and comfort while providing access to natural light and direct proximity to nursing staff and other support services. Infusion capacity has nearly doubled to now house 18 chemotherapy bays and two private rooms. Exam room capacity has also been increased from four to 10 rooms in the new center.

ACMH and AHN partner to provide a full spectrum of surgical, medical and radiation oncology services. The cancer center’s advanced technologies and clinician expertise offer patients a wide array of resources to help diagnose cancer in its earliest stages and care for those diagnosed at any stage.

Among the AHNCI physicians who practice at ACMH are medical oncologists Gene Finley, MD  and Jyothika Mamadgi, MD, radiation oncologist Tracy Klayton, MD, surgical oncologist  Rebecca Edmonds, MD, and surgeon Kirsten Newhams, MD, MPH.  

“We are so pleased to be welcoming our patients into this new and vibrant facility,” stated Nichole Geraci, ACMH Hospital Chief Operations Officer. “From the initial design meetings through to the facility’s completion, our primary focus has been on enhancing the patient experience and the efficient delivery of expert cancer care.”

ACMH representatives thank the community for their support of the project.

“Many individuals in the community had a hand in the completion of this newly revitalized cancer center,” states Dana Mikos, ACMH Executive Director of Nursing.  “Through community-based initiatives and events such as the hospital’s Color Run for Cancer and our annual golf outing, people came together to support this expansion in many ways, and we thank each and every one of them for supporting us.”

A public Open House event is planned for March where members of the community and supporting partners will be invited to celebrate the reopening of the center.

ACMH and AHN Cancer Institute will also mark the opening of the new center with a free cancer screening session, taking place at the center on March 11. Details on the screenings and registration information will be released at a future date.

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About ACMH:

ACMH Hospital is an exceptional facility with a comprehensive array of services – many of which are unique for a community hospital. Featuring all private rooms and a campus like setting, ACMH has been a trusted member of the community since 1898. ACMH is becoming an increasingly advanced community healthcare system — with the likes of new lung cancer diagnostic procedures, robotic surgery and state-of-the-art interventional radiology. These services join its already-top ranked cardiovascular program, knee and shoulder replacement specialties, primary stroke center and accredited cancer care. With historically low infection rates and highly innovative services, ACMH has evolved to become a destination point of care for many throughout the region.

About Allegheny Health Network Cancer Institute:

Allegheny Health Network is a 14hospital western Pennsylvania-based integrated healthcare system that serves patients from across a five-state region that includes western Pennsylvania and the adjacent regions of Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland and New York. The Network’s Cancer Institute employs more than 200 physicians and 500 oncology professionals who provide a complete spectrum of oncology care at more than 20 affiliated cancer centers and oncology clinics, including access to state-of-the-art technologies and new therapies being explored in clinical cancer trials. The Cancer Institute has the only cancer program in the Pittsburgh region with Integrated Network Cancer Program accreditation by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer, and its radiation oncology program is the largest in the country accredited by the American College of Radiology.  AHN Cancer Institute is a Quality Oncology Practice Initiative certified practice, and is accredited by the Foundation for Accreditation of Cellular Therapy and National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers. AHN also has a formal affiliation with the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, one of the nation’s 41 comprehensive cancer centers designated by the National Cancer Institute, for research, medical education and clinical services. To schedule an appointment with an AHN oncologist, please call 412.DOCTORS or visit www.ahn.org/find-a-doctor.      

About the Laube Cancer Center

The Laube Cancer Center at ACMH Hospital has recently completed a year-long, $8 million expansion and renovation project that greatly enhances patients’ access to and experience with the hospital’s cancer programs in a beautiful, state-of-the-art facility. The center is directed by physicians from the Allegheny Health Network (AHN) Cancer Institute and staffed by a team of highly trained ACMH nurses and medical assistants who are dedicated to providing exceptional cancer care. ACMH and AHN teams partner to provide a full spectrum of surgical, medical and radiation oncology services. The cancer center’s advanced technologies and clinician expertise offer patients a wide array of resources to diagnose cancer in its earliest stages and care for those diagnosed at any stage. Medical and Radiation Oncology coexist in the center, enhancing patient convenience and seamless collaboration. The Radiation Oncology Department at the Laube Cancer Center features state-of-the-art equipment and technology with treatment programs including 3D Conformal Radiation Therapy, Brachytherapy and IMRT (Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy.

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