The WVU Cancer Institute at United Hospital Center (UHC) is the first in the state to offer CYTALUX® (pafolacianine), a groundbreaking imaging agent for lung cancer detection. This innovative technology enhances a surgeons’ ability to visualize, identify, and remove cancerous tissue with precision and in real time.
“The WVU Cancer Institute leads the region in comprehensive lung cancer care, offering advanced screenings through both brick-and-mortar locations and our Mobile Cancer Screening Program, which makes screenings more accessible,” Hannah Hazard-Jenkins, M.D., executive chair and director of the WVU Cancer Institute, said.
“Our multidisciplinary approach ensures personalized, expert treatment plans for every patient. With the introduction of CYTALUX, we continue to set the standard for cutting-edge cancer care and innovation in West Virginia and beyond.”
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths, with nearly 240,000 new diagnoses and almost 130,000 deaths from the disease in the U.S. each year. In West Virginia, lung cancer accounts for 18 percent of all new cancer diagnoses. Lung cancer is also the cause of more cancer deaths than colorectal, prostate, and breast cancer combined.
“As the first surgeon in the world to use CYTALUX commercially for lung cancer, I’m proud to bring it to my home state of West Virginia,” Nicholas Baker, M.D., thoracic surgeon in the WVU Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery and the WVU Heart and Vascular Institute and the WVU Cancer Institute at UHC, said.
“By allowing us to better see cancer as we operate, this novel technology will allow surgeons to provide more precise surgery and help ensure complete removal of all disease. This has the potential to be a major enhancement for our community and state,” Vinay Badhwar, M.D., professor and chair of the Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery and executive chair of the WVU Heart and Vascular Institute, said. “It is through these sorts of innovations and collaborations between our WVU Medicine institutes that we can leverage our collective strengths to bring about real and effective change for patients of West Virginia.”
Clinical trials demonstrate that surgeons using CYTALUX can find lung cancer lesions traditionally not found with standard approaches in almost 20 percent of patients and identify another 8 percent of cancerous lesions that were missed by preoperative imaging.
Administered by standard IV in as little as one hour before surgery, CYTALUX binds to folate receptors that are present on lung cancer cells and contains a dye that lights up when a special camera is used during surgery.
“I’m so grateful for the WVU Cancer Institute’s mobile screening unit, LUCAS, which caught my lung cancer early,” Penny Cooley of Jane Lew, the first patient to receive this imaging agent at WVU Medicine, said. “Within two weeks, I was in surgery with Dr. Baker, and I can’t say enough good things about him. He is truly amazing. Thanks to him and the quick, compassionate care I received, I’m on my way back to enjoying life.”
“Dr. Baker and our team at the UHC Lung Center are true assets for the patients in our region,” David F. Hess, M.D., president and CEO of UHC, said. “The essence of WVU Medicine is obvious by the collaboration of two of our most prestigious service lines, the WVU Cancer Institute and the WVU Heart and Vascular Institute, working together to provide immediate access to world-class care for our patients, right in their own community.”
For more information on the WVU Cancer Institute, visit WVUMedicine.org/Cancer. For more information on WVU Medicine United Hospital Center, visit UHCWV.org.
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