WASHINGTON, DC (April 14, 2026) — The new Cancer Doesn’t Care Fund, founded by the American College of Radiology Foundation and the Cancer Doesn’t Care initiative, will fuel efforts to expand screening access, boost early detection and support research for individuals at high risk for cancer – including those not currently covered under existing guidelines.
“Too many people are diagnosed with lung cancer at late stages, where survival is limited, because U.S. Preventive Services Task Force rules focus mainly on age and smoking history,” said Kim Sandler, MD, co-chair of the ACR Lung Cancer Screening Committee. “Many who develop lung cancer have never smoked or smoked very little and do not meet those criteria.”
“Cancer doesn’t care whether or how much you smoke,” said Shira Boehler, lung cancer survivor, author of One Scan Saved My Life: How One Woman's Story Will Change the Way We Detect Lung Cancer, and founder of Cancer Doesn’t Care. “This initiative can enable many women, and men, who otherwise may not be tested to have their cancers found early when they are most treatable.”
The Cancer Doesn’t Care Fund will spark pilot programs, community partnerships, technology development and policy research. It would also promote efforts to ensure uninsured and underserved patients get screened earlier.
"This initiative gives us a way to reach the people current policy leaves behind, strengthen the evidence and move national screening practices toward greater equity and earlier detection," said Eric Hart, MD, co-chair of the ACR Lung Cancer Screening Committee.
Funds will come from private donors, foundations, industry partners (following strict ethics rules), and grants. All projects would follow research standards, quality safeguards and independent oversight.
“The ACRF and Cancer Doesn’t Care collaboration will support earlier detection, save lives and provide new evidence to help update national screening guidelines,” said Alan H. Matsumoto, MD, FACR, chair of the ACR Foundation and ACR Board of Chancellors Chair.
Ms. Boehler and Dr. Sandler will speak about the new Cancer Doesn’t Care Fund during “A Fireside Chat with Shira Kupperman Boehler, Dr. Mehmet Oz, and Dr. Kim Lori Sandler,” Tuesday, April 14 at 6pm ET at the Trump Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.
To arrange an interview with an ACR spokesperson, contact ACR Public Affairs at PR@acr.org.
To arrange interviews with Shira Bohler, please contact Megan Rollberg at rollberg@raremanagement.org.
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