Patient safety and outstanding patient care has always been and will always be at the forefront of everything we do. Our singular focus on treating and protecting our patients’ health has been steadfast throughout the history of Penn State Health.
We believe the reporting by this outlet is based almost entirely on materials more than two years old and it does not provide an accurate representation of Penn State Cancer Institute (PSCI) as it exists today.
During the last two years – we have made significant changes to PSCI’s leadership, staffing, operations, clinical capabilities and research processes.
In early 2024, we established five working groups charged with enhancing PSCI’s ability to provide exceptional care. These groups have made tremendous progress, including implementation of new, streamlined workflows, new clinical workload programs, updated training modules, and new clinical tracking programs.
We have been actively building a stronger culture based on excellence, compliance, transparency and collaboration, with the singular focus of providing the best possible care for our patients and their families. Further, to support patient outcomes we have dramatically increased our staffing.
PSCI has invested the funding it has received to conduct clinical trials, provide ongoing care for our patients, and continuously enhance its ability to do more of the leading-edge research that will help identify new treatment options.
In all the work done to continue building PSCI, the primary focus remains creating a world-class cancer care and research capability for the people we treat. Our world-class Cancer Institute is recognized for treating a broad range of cancers, including rare and complex diseases and we are incredibly grateful for our physicians, nurses, researchers and staff who remain deeply committed to delivering safe, high-quality care and leading-edge research for every patient we serve.
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The following statement is in response to the second Spotlight PA story regarding Penn State Cancer Institute, published on Nov. 21, 2025:
Patient safety, research integrity, and outstanding patient care are always at the forefront of our patient care and clinical research within our Cancer Institute.
This Spotlight PA story misrepresents the history of the Penn State Cancer Institute and our longstanding commitment to patient safety and access to lifesaving clinical trials for our patients and families.
In the last two years the Penn State Cancer Institute has been restructured to enhance rigor and functional efficiency. We have been building a workplace that prioritizes excellence, collaboration, encouragement, and support. Our talented providers and staff are deeply committed and dedicated to providing exemplary patient care. We have dramatically increased our staffing and streamlined workloads to enhance efficiencies, support accountability, and ensure compliance as we build and support high-capacity teams.
Oversight by Penn State University’s Human Research Protection Program monitors that clinical trial protocols comply with the regulations and policies in place to protect human subjects. This monitoring ensures compliance with stringent Federal standards for protecting our patients. For the last two years assessments from federal and industry monitors, who review research programs on an ongoing basis, reported no compliance issues related to patient safety.
The Cancer Institute has invested its funding to conduct clinical trials, provide ongoing care for our patients, and continuously enhance its ability to do more of the leading-edge research that will help identify new treatment options. The primary focus remains creating a world-class cancer care and research capability for the people of Central Pennsylvania and expanding further our care and research capabilities for those we serve.