Independence Health System thoracic surgery program earns highest STS quality rating for lung cancer resection

GREENSBURG, Pa., Sept. 16, 2026 ─ The Westmoreland-area thoracic surgery program of Independence Health System has once again earned the highest rating available from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) for patient care and outcomes in lung cancer resection procedures. This designation places the program among an elite group of general thoracic surgery programs in the US and Canada.

The STS rating system is one of the most sophisticated and highly regarded overall measures of quality in healthcare, rating the benchmarked outcomes of cardiothoracic surgery programs in the US and Canada.

“This recognition reflects our team's commitment to delivering the highest quality care for patients with lung cancer,” said Michael Szwerc, M.D., medical director of the Advanced Lung Center and chairman of the Committee on Cancer. “From screening and diagnosis through surgery and recovery, we are focused on achieving the best possible outcomes while allowing patients to receive expert care close to home.”

The General Thoracic Surgery Database (GTSD) ratings are derived by testing whether the participant's composite or domain score is significantly different from the overall STS average for primary lung cancer resections performed by GTSD participants.

The latest analysis of data for lung cancer resection covers a three-year period, from Jan. 1, 2023 to Dec. 31, 2025.

“The Society of Thoracic Surgeons leads the effort in quality improvement by maintaining one of the most penetrant clinical databases in cardiothoracic surgery that employs high-fidelity risk models to provide risk-adjusted outcomes to individual participants,” said Ram Kumar Subramanyan, MD, PhD, Chair of the STS Council on Quality and Research. “STS thanks participants for voluntarily submitting data to the databases, demonstrating their commitment to improving healthcare delivery. Voluntary public reporting of outcomes by individual participants provides patients and their families with meaningful information to help them make informed decisions about healthcare.”

The STS National Database was established in 1989 as an initiative for quality improvement and patient safety among cardiothoracic surgeons. The Database includes four components: the Adult Cardiac Surgery Database (ACSD), the Congenital Heart Surgery Database (CHSD), the GTSD, and the mechanical circulatory support database (Intermacs). The GTSD is the largest and most robust clinical thoracic surgical database in the United States and Canada. The STS National Database contains more than 10 million surgical records from 6,000 participating physicians, including surgeons and anesthesiologists, which encompass more than 95% of adult cardiac and congenital heart surgery performed in the US.

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About STS
Founded in 1964, The Society of Thoracic Surgeons is a not-for-profit organization representing more than 7,800 cardiothoracic surgeons, researchers, and allied healthcare professionals worldwide who are dedicated to ensuring the best possible outcomes for surgeries of the heart, lung, and esophagus, as well as other surgical procedures within the chest. The Society’s mission is to enhance the ability of cardiothoracic surgeons to provide the highest quality patient care through education, research, and advocacy.

About Independence Health System

Nationally recognized for quality care, Independence Health System comprises Butler Memorial, Clarion, Frick, Latrobe and Westmoreland Hospitals with a combined bed count of 925. With more than 1,000 physicians and advanced practice providers and nearly 7,000 employees, the System is the third largest in western Pennsylvania serving a population base of 750,000 in a footprint spanning a multi-county region. 

The System includes tertiary programs rated among America’s best for cardiac care and surgery, earning accolades from a number of prestigious outlets and organizations. Locally owned and locally controlled, Independence Health System offers its patients low-cost, high-quality care across the care spectrum in such specialties as cardiology, cardiovascular and thoracic surgery, orthopedics and sports medicine, minimally invasive and robotic surgery, women’s health and obstetrics, emergency medicine, behavioral health and primary care. Its network of outpatient centers sees more than 1.2 million visits annually. The homecare division further supports patients at all stages of life with home health and hospice services. Learn more at www.independence.health.