Clinical Trials & Research

We go beyond delivering the best available treatments for cancer – we are at the forefront of developing the next generation of innovative cancer solutions that are targeted to your needs.

Understanding how to detect and treat cancer is the best way to eliminate it. That’s why Allegheny Health Network invests resources into finding new ways to fight cancer. We have hundreds of clinical trials investigating the latest approaches to care.

Expanded relationship with Johns Hopkins Medicine

In addition to the clinical trials available through the AHN Cancer Institute, we are able to provide streamlined and guided access to even more clinical trials, thanks to our growing collaboration with the world-renowned Johns Hopkins Medicine. Patients at AHN have streamlined and guided access to the unique expertise of the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center team and hundreds of novel therapies through the Center’s clinical trials research program.

You don’t need to travel far from home for sophisticated, pioneering treatment options. AHN patients have local access to many of these revolutionary clinical trials right here in western Pennsylvania. Combined, the two cancer programs have more than 500 active clinical trials, the most in the area.

Effective treatment for complex cancers

Together, the AHN Cancer Institute and Johns Hopkins Medicine are working to combat even the rarest and most complex cancers. And AHN patients may benefit from each institution’s ongoing innovation. This includes Johns Hopkins Medicine’s revolutionary proton beam therapy program. It’s a sophisticated, ground-breaking radiation therapy treatment, launching in 2019. Patients may also have access to advanced molecular testing provided by Johns Hopkins Medicine. This technology will help guide more personalized and effective treatment for patients diagnosed with late-stage cancer.

Pioneering work in cancer treatment

It’s our latest in a long commitment to groundbreaking cancer care. Chief among these discoveries and contributions are:

• A pioneering study that ultimately recommended lumpectomy and radiation over more radical mastectomy as the new standard for breast cancer surgical treatment.
• A study demonstrating the preventive effects of the drug Tamoxifen in treating breast cancer. See active breast cancer clinical trials

• Pioneering lung cancer surgery and radiation therapy technique to spare healthy lung tissue while maintaining proper lung function. See active lung cancer clinical trials
• Pioneered preoperative chemoradiation and surgical techniques for patients with rectal cancer. See active colorectal cancer clinical trials
• Creation of a clinical trial that established new national standards for breast radiation therapy in collaboration with prestigious cancer organizations from across the country
• In collaboration with Siemens, one of the first five sites worldwide to test and implement advanced radiation therapy technology
• First site in the region to implement TomoTherapy for effective treatment of prostate cancer

Contact us

Call the AHN Cancer Help Line anytime at (412) NURSE-4-U (412) 687-7348 to schedule a cancer-related appointment or to just talk with our nurses about diagnoses, treatments, and side effects.