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Geisinger president and CEO Jaewon Ryu, M.D., J.D., discusses the organization's commitment to Luzerne County and the surrounding area's residents to stay close to home for the most advanced, life-saving care.

Frank M. and Dorothea Henry Cancer Center expansion to anchor refacing of area hospital

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – Officials from Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center today unveiled plans for an $80 million investment to establish the facility as the pre-eminent regional cancer center while refacing the main entrance of the hospital that opened nearly 40 years ago.

Since 2008, Geisinger has invested more than $215 million into better and more accessible care for people in Luzerne County, and this development, along with a $6.5 million installation of CyberKnife radiation therapy at the hospital, will bring that total investment of technology and services to more than $300 million.

“Everything we do at Geisinger is aimed at making health easier for the communities we serve,” said Jaewon Ryu, M.D., J.D., Geisinger’s president and CEO. “This commitment in Luzerne County ensures our neighbors in northeastern Pennsylvania can stay close to home for the most advanced, life-saving care. It’s the fulfillment of the vision that the Henry family and their partners on the Geisinger board set out with almost 30 years ago.” 

The construction project slated to begin this summer is anchored by an expansion to the Frank M. and Dorothea Henry Cancer Center. The 92,150-square-foot, four-story expansion will feature high-end care including an 18-bed inpatient unit to serve bone marrow transplant recipients, consolidation of treatment services, and a redesigned reception and lounge area. Rooms on the inpatient unit will adapt to people’s needs and feature finely controlled heating, ventilation and air-conditioning to ensure the safest patient environment. 

In addition to expanding cancer services, the project will produce a new, modern façade and lobby at the hospital’s main entrance as well as added space and resources for Geisinger’s retail pharmacy. 

Additions at the Henry Cancer Center, which opened in 1992 thanks in part to a transformative gift from long-time donors Frank M. and Dorothea Henry, will bolster a cancer program that already offers advanced, individualized care delivered by multidisciplinary teams of hematologists and medical oncologists, genetic counselors, nutritionists, social services professionals, spiritual care counselors and an entire surgical suite of specially trained providers. Services already housed in the Henry Cancer Center include chemotherapy, infusion therapy, sophisticated imaging, comprehensive lab services, pharmacy services, and research and clinical trials. 

“For nearly three decades, Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center has been building a program that brings exceptional cancer care to the residents of northeastern Pennsylvania,” said Rajiv Panikkar, M.D., chair of the Geisinger Cancer Institute. “With this expansion, we’re taking yet another step toward offering our neighbors and their caretakers everything they need in their own community.”

The investment reinforces Geisinger’s pledge to offer the best quality care to northeastern Pennsylvanians. 

“When our patients enter Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center, they’ll feel the inviting, personal touch of their local hospital, but they’ll also know they’re walking into a world-class facility,” said Ron Beer, chief administrative officer of Geisinger’s northeast region. “Our patients don’t have to leave the area for advanced care, thanks to the continued support of our community. The Henry family’s vision for state-of-the-art cancer care in northeastern Pennsylvania has changed the lives of countless members of our communities, and that vision lives on today.”

This summer’s expansion project is the latest in a long line of investments that Geisinger has made in Luzerne County. In fiscal year 2018, Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center and Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre contributed $68.5 million in community benefit. Because of these investments, the level of care once reserved to major metropolitan areas is now available right here in our own backyard.

2008: $60 million construction of the Critical Care Building, which now houses the Emergency Department at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center and made possible the development of the trauma program:

  • 2009: Henry Cancer Center at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center undergoes $15 million expansion
  • 2011: $10.2 million investment produces the Mother and Baby Unit and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center
  • 2012: Geisinger breaks ground on $3.8 million Nanticoke clinic
  • 2013: Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center opens $1.2 million Center for Women’s Imaging at Henry Cancer Center
  • 2013: Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center opens $9.5 million, 24-bed Progressive Care Unit in the Critical Care Building 
  • 2014: Geisinger invests $35.8 million to purchase 1155 and 1175 E. Mountain Blvd. and 675 Baltimore Drive in Wilkes-Barre 
  • 2015: Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre opens $7.1 million Short Stay Unit and Surgical Suite
  • 2015: Geisinger opens Pittston and Mountain Top multidisciplinary clinics — $16.7 million investment
  • 2016: First Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center patient treated with NeuroBlate system, which utilizes focused laser technology to treat brain tumors
    Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center opens $8.7 million Electrophysiology Suite
  • 2018: $5 million renovation project at Geisinger South Wilkes-Barre creates 14-bed medical/surgical inpatient suite, expands laboratory and radiology services and reopens Emergency Department
  • 2018: Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center installs $4.5 million TrueBeam system, which provides high-energy radiation for fast, precise, non-invasive treatment of complex cancers 
  • 2018: $5.5 million renovation produces Magnetic Resonance Imaging Suite at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center
  • 2018: Geisinger opens $8.5 million Kingston multidisciplinary clinic 
  • 2019: Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center unveils $22 million Central Utility Plant, which utilizes combined heat and power to reduce energy consumption by 40 percent, expanding the capacity for growth on the hospital campus
  • 2019: Geisinger opens $3 million 65 Forward Health Center in Kingston, which features concierge-style primary care services, lab and imaging services and health and wellness programs to Geisinger Medicare Advantage members

Nearing completion is the installation of the CyberKnife system, a state-of-the-art delivery mechanism for highly targeted radiation therapy — a treatment previously only available in cities such as Philadelphia and New York.

For more information on cancer care at Geisinger, visit Geisinger.org/cancerexpansion.

Ron Beer, chief administrative officer of Geisinger’s northeast region, and Rajiv Panikkar, M.D., chair of the Geisinger Cancer Institute, discuss what is to come with the Frank M. and Dorothea Henry Cancer Center expansion at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center.

About Geisinger
Geisinger is committed to making better health easier for the more than 1 million people it serves. Founded more than 100 years ago by Abigail Geisinger, the system now includes 10 hospital campuses, a health plan with more than half a million members, a research institute and the Geisinger College of Health Sciences, which includes schools of medicine, nursing and graduate education. With more than 25,000 employees and 1,700+ employed physicians, Geisinger boosts its hometown economies in Pennsylvania by billions of dollars annually. Learn more at geisinger.org or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.

 
Rendering of the Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center at dawn.
Exterior rendering at dawn of the Frank M. and Dorothea Henry Cancer Center expansion at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center.
Rendering of the Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center expansion.
Exterior rendering of the Frank M. and Dorothea Henry Cancer Center expansion at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center.

For media inquires:

R. Matthew Mattei
Senior Communications Specialist

570-808-3971
rmmattei1@geisinger.edu
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