(Photo Provided with Release Courtesy of Allegheny Health Network)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Allegheny Health Network Cancer Institute announced Thursday that the Glimmer of Hope Foundation donated $140,000 to launch a new “Mind, Body, Care” initiative in partnership with the AHN Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Institute and the AHN Imaging Institute.

The initiative is designed to improve quality of life for breast cancer patients, particularly those living with metastatic disease.

According to AHN, the funding will expand access to behavioral health services, introduce advanced diagnostic technology, and provide comfort-focused resources for patients across Western Pennsylvania.

Officials said the donation builds on Glimmer of Hope’s longstanding support of the AHN Cancer Institute and strengthens the region’s continuum of breast cancer care.

The “Mind, Body, Care” initiative is centered on these three primary areas, according to a release from Allegheny Health Network:

• Mind: Expanding access to behavioral health services for metastatic breast cancer patients, this pillar builds on a successful 2025 pilot program, which you can find out more about by clicking here. Funding will support the continued placement of a specialized behavioral health psychologist in the clinic, providing therapy to this high-need population.
• Body: Introducing contrast-enhanced mammography at AHN Allegheny General Hospital, representing a significant advancement in breast cancer diagnostics. Contrast-enhanced mammography offers superior lesion visibility, particularly for women with dense breast tissue, and demonstrates diagnostic performance comparable to breast MRI. Expanding access to this technology is expected to reduce diagnostic delays, minimize unnecessary biopsies, and shorten time to treatment — especially for underserved patients who face barriers to obtaining breast MRI.
• Care: Providing SuzziPads to patients at five AHN Cancer Institute locations — Saint Vincent in Erie, Wexford, Allegheny General, Forbes, and Jefferson Hospital/Bethel Park. SuzziPads are specialized cold-therapy socks and mittens designed to help reduce chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, a common and often debilitating side effect of treatment. SuzziPads can also help prevent fingernail and toenail loss and other extremity damage associated with chemotherapy.