Cancer Care in West Virginia
By Anna Moore
It’s a word no one wants to hear—cancer. In West Virginia, cancer rates are higher than the national average, with 482 new cases or events per 100,000 people annually compared to the U.S. average of 442. The National Cancer Institute records the more common types of cancer in the state, including breast, with an average of about 120 new cases per 100,000 people annually, and prostate, with an average of about 98 new cases per 100,000 people annually. Lung and bronchus have the third highest average at about 76 new cases per 100,000 people annually. Given those numbers, our three health systems operate world-class oncology with care that extends to all involved in the circumstances. Regardless of age or diagnosis, it is possible to receive quality care and treatment right here at home.
WVU Cancer Institute
By Stephanie Bock
The WVU Cancer Institute is passionate about providing world-class cancer care in West Virginia and throughout the region. The Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center, located in Morgantown, WV, is the institute’s largest, most comprehensive cancer care facility, but the WVU Cancer Institute also has a network of 14 regional hospital locations, with the goal of providing cancer care close to home.
The WVU Cancer Institute’s larger, regional sites offer medical oncology, surgery and infusion services, as well as highly advanced radiation oncology services, while the critical access hospitals and smaller community hospitals provide infusion services and outpatient medical oncology.
“This is very intentional,” says Hannah Hazard-Jenkins, M.D., FACS, director of the WVU Cancer Institute and a breast surgical oncologist. “We want our patients to have the care they need, right in their own backyard. A cancer diagnosis is a life-changing event. Finding and receiving cancer care should not add to that stress. That’s why the WVU Cancer Institute is dedicated to providing life-saving cancer care through a broad, integrated network.”
Modern treatments help more people survive cancer than ever before. At the WVU Cancer Institute, patients have an entire team of clinicians and support staff who are tirelessly working to support them through the continuum of cancer care.
“Multidisciplinary care teams work together to plan and provide treatments,” Hazard-Jenkins explains. “Our medical, surgical and radiation oncology teams merge the latest cancer medications, therapies and surgical approaches with groundbreaking technology and patient-driven research to offer personalized care.”
As part of West Virginia’s top academic health system—WVU Medicine—the institute provides patients with access to cancer care not widely available in non-academic settings. In fact, the Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center is the only facility in West Virginia that offers blood and bone marrow transplants, photopheresis and CAR T-cell therapy; gamma knife radiosurgery for brain cancers and metastasis; and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy and isolated hepatic infusion.
In addition to offering diagnosis and treatment in its physical locations, the WVU Cancer Institute is traveling the state providing cancer screenings. Close to 3,500 breast and lung cancer screenings will be provided this year alone through Bonnie’s Bus (breast cancer screening) and LUCAS (lung cancer screening).
In 2023, the WVU Cancer Institute was named to Newsweek’s list of America’s Best Cancer Hospitals. For the 2023-2024 U.S. News & World Report Best Hospital rankings, two WVU Medicine hospitals affiliated with the WVU Cancer Institute were recognized. WVU Medicine J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital was recognized as High Performing in Cancer in the Specialties category. In the Procedures and Conditions category, Ruby Memorial Hospital was recognized as High Performing for Colon Cancer Surgery; Leukemia, Lymphoma and Myeloma; and Lung Cancer Surgery. WVU Medicine United Hospital Center was recognized as High Performing for Lung Cancer Surgery in the Procedures and Conditions category.
“From providing better access to cancer care and growing our team of specialists and researchers to offering the latest advancements and innovations, we are committed to providing the highest quality care to the entire state and region,” Hazard-Jenkins says.
Vandalia Health
By Dale Witte
Vandalia Health, created by Mon Health System and Charleston Area Medical Center (CAMC) in 2022, operates cancer centers in Beckley, Charleston, Hurricane, Kingwood, Morgantown and Weston. The facilities offer a multidisciplinary team approach to treating cancer, from diagnosis to survivorship. In 2022, there were more than 35,500 patient encounters at the CAMC Cancer Center and more than 10,500 patient encounters at Mon Health System.
The CAMC Cancer Center, the largest and busiest cancer center in West Virginia, provides personalized multidisciplinary cancer care, access to innovative clinical cancer research trials and hematological care. Cancer patients have access to their care in one convenient location, including a boutique for cancer patients needing assistance with wigs, hair care and other products, as well as an outpatient pharmacy for patients’ medication needs. The center houses the CAMC Breast Center, where breast surgeons, nurse navigators, genetic counselors and radiologists provide the highest level of care for patients with breast cancer.
CAMC’s cancer services have been accredited since 1956 and offer the highest trained, nationally certified health care professionals in the region. CAMC Women and Children’s Hospital provides pediatric cancer care for the children of Southern West Virginia, including other pediatric specialties that may be required as part of their treatment. CAMC’s Teays Valley Cancer Center offers hematology/oncology services and infusion for patients in Putnam County. The Mon Health Zelda Stein Weiss Cancer Center has an award-winning record for patient experience and safety.
The Center is accredited by the Commission on Cancer, Healthgrades, the Surgical Review Corporation as a Surgical Center of Excellence and the American College of Radiology as a Designated Lung Cancer Screening Center. The commission’s gold-level commendation has also recognized the Mon Health Cancer Center as among the nation’s leading, high-quality community cancer programs. The center follows National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines when developing personalized treatment plans.
Mon Health Stonewall Jackson Memorial Hospital is celebrating the 10-year anniversary of its Oncology Infusion and Vein Center, which opened as the first of its kind in the Weston, WV, area. Mon Health Preston Memorial Hospital is opening a comprehensive infusion center that will provide cancer care for patients in Preston County who previously had to drive an hour or more for cancer care.
Our specialists treat a variety of cancers, offering the latest treatments and technologies. Interventional radiologists use minimally invasive image-guided therapies to diagnose and target tumors with small skin incisions and without the need for large surgeries. Surgeons are also performing robotic lung-sparing surgery for lung cancer and robotic esophagectomy for esophageal cancer. Surgeons treat gynecologic cancers with the latest minimally invasive techniques. In addition, physicians are using many innovative approaches to prostate cancer including Provenge, Focal One and Pluvicto.
Marshall Health
By Angela Henderson-Bentley
The Edwards Cancer Institute in Huntington, WV, provides high-quality cancer care for patients throughout 40 counties in West Virginia, southern Ohio and eastern Kentucky.
By combining the expertise and offerings of the region’s top two cancer centers, the Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center at Cabell Huntington Hospital and St. Mary’s Regional Cancer Center, the Edwards Cancer Institute enhances the ability to meet patients’ needs through coordinated care teams to guide patients and their families through diagnosis, treatment and survivorship. The Edwards Cancer Institute also supports services at Rivers Health in Point Pleasant, WV, and Logan Regional Medical Center to help patients of these areas receive leading-edge cancer care close to home.
The Edwards Cancer Institute provides a team-based, multidisciplinary approach to care, with providers sharing best practices to develop an individualized plan of care for each patient. In addition to physical treatments, mental health support is also a crucial component of care. The Edwards Cancer Institute team shares one common goal—beating cancer.
As a vital part of Marshall Health Network’s integrated academic health system, the Edwards Cancer Institute offers greater access to innovative, research-based care, including clinical trials. The institute also offers unique educational opportunities, such as the hematology/oncology fellowship at the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine. The fellowship combines hematology and medical oncology training in a three-year program, which couples professional knowledge and skills in both clinical practice and research while preparing fellows to achieve board certification in both specialties.
The Edwards Cancer Institute offers patients the latest tools in diagnosing and treating cancer through programs recognized by national accrediting bodies. St. Mary’s Regional Cancer Center is the only facility in West Virginia with CyberKnife, a robotic radiotherapy device that delivers precise radiation with fewer treatments. The Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center offers similar treatments with a TrueBeam linear accelerator with BRAINLAB stereotactic and advanced imaging capabilities. The Edwards Cancer Institute’s team of surgeons lead the nation in minimally invasive cancer surgeries using the da Vinci Surgical System.
The Edwards Cancer Institute offers several free screening events throughout the year to support early detection and treatment of cancer. For example, the institute has defined a robust screening platform for lung cancer. By identifying at-risk patients and offering low-dose CT scans, the Edwards team can identify cancer at an earlier, more treatable stage.
The Edwards Cancer Institute is a member of Marshall Health Network, a West Virginia-based not-for-profit academic health system that includes the Marshall Health physician practice and four hospitals: Cabell Huntington Hospital, a 303-bed teaching hospital; St. Mary’s Medical Center, a 393-bed teaching hospital; Hoops Family Children’s Hospital, a 72-bed pediatric specialty hospital within Cabell Huntington Hospital; and Rivers Health, a 101 acute-bed hospital. It also includes the employed physician practices of the hospitals.
