Screenings urged during Lung Cancer Awareness Month

November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month, and the Central Virginia Care System team of specialized nurse navigators, cardiothoracic surgeons and oncologists are uring veterans and those in other high-risk groups to get screened.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, veterans tend to smoke more, and are likely to have worse tobacco and non-tobacco risk factors than the general public.  People who smoke are at higher risk of being diagnosed with lung cancer, and as they age, the risk increases. Dr. Peter Lee, the CVHCS director of Bronchoscopy and Interventional Pulmonology, said certain racial groups are also more likely to be diagnosed at an earlier age.

Survey data show that only 36 percent of people know that lung cancer screening is available, and 29 percent know that lung cancer is the leading cancer killer of women and men.

“It is estimated that in 2021, 5,820 people will be diagnosed with lung cancer and 3,520 will die from the disease,” said Aleks Casper, director of advocacy at the Lung Association in Virginia. “However, there is hope. The five-year survival rate has increased 33% in the past 10 years thanks to advancements in treatment, research and lifesaving lung cancer screening.”

For details about the Virginia program, which provides education on early detection, tobacco cessation counseling, and maintenance of an active patient registry, visit https://www.cancer.va.gov. For details about Lung Cancer Awareness Month, visit https://www.lung.org/.