Excela Health receives $1.5 million donation toward Latrobe Surgical Institute

Excela Health Latrobe Hospital has received a $1.5 million donation toward its recently established Surgical Institute, the health system said Friday.

The Katherine Mabis McKenna Foundation made the donation, the foundation’s largest single grant to Excela.

The donation will help Excela relocate its lung, breast, prostate and colorectal cancer programs to one location, Excela Chief Philanthropy Officer Albert Novak said.

The Surgical Institute, opened in 2021, is focused on cancer care. It features an advanced operating room and surgical robot.

In October, Excela projected the institute to be a $10 million investment. Novak said Excela is “incredibly grateful” for any gift to the institute.

“Fundraising isn’t about the total number. … It’s about changing lives,” Novak said. “If we can help patients and their families … get through (a cancer diagnosis) quicker, safer, with better results, that will have been a successful campaign.”

Since September, surgeons have performed 112 surgeries at the institute, Excela said.

This isn’t the first time the Latrobe-based foundation has given to Excela. It previously contributed a total of $950,000.

In a news release, McKenna Foundation Chairman and CEO Linda McKenna Boxx stressed the importance of providing cancer care “close to home.”

“More and more people are surviving cancer,” Boxx said. “The Surgical Institute is a key component in the ongoing effort to find and treat cancer sooner.”

Those who wish to donate to Excela can visit the health system’s website, Novak said.