ACR Promotes Lung Cancer Screening Nationwide

November is National Lung Cancer Awareness Month and ACR^® is showcasing its dedication to expanded lung cancer screening and patient care through a combination of advocacy and volunteer service across the country. The annual campaign reinforces the College’s commitment to advance federal and local policies that expand lung cancer screening programs, fund research and promote patient education. Lung cancer is the leading cause of death in the U.S.

November events to date include:

Washington, DC

Kim Sandler, MD, co-chair of the ACR Lung Cancer Screening Steering Committee, and Tiffany Gowen, ACR staff lead for the Lung Cancer Screening Committee kicked off advocacy efforts Nov. 5, in Washington, DC, at the LUNGevity Foundation’s White Flag for Lung Cancer event on the National Mall. The event united patients, survivors, advocates and policymakers to honor the memory of individuals who lost their lives lost to lung cancer.  Participants — standing among 60,000 white and US flags (representing veterans), each symbolizing two lives lost to lung cancer — helped amplify the urgent message that early detection and greater access to screening save lives.

Denver

Debra Dyer, MD, immediate Past Chair of the ACR Lung Cancer Screening Steering Committee, and Gowen participated in National Lung Cancer Screening Day at National Jewish Health Nov. 8. The event, created in partnership with the College, Radiology Health Equity Coalition, GO₂ for Lung Cancer and the American Cancer Society’s National Lung Cancer Roundtable, focused on three main goals:

• Raising awareness of early cancer detection
• Reducing access disparities
• Eliminating stigma surrounding lung cancer and screening

Through the efforts of volunteers and clinicians, 29 patients at the event received potentially life-saving low-dose CT screenings.  Nationwide, more than 500 hospitals, imaging facilities and nonprofits volunteered to take part in National Lung Cancer Screening Day.

Richmond, VA

ACR Board Chair Alan H. Matsumoto, MD, MA, FACR, and Arun Krishnaraj, MD, MPH, FACR, Chair of the ACR Commission on Patient and Family-Centered Care, and Gowen will take part in the Lung Cancer Awareness Month and Lung Cancer Screening Day gubernatorial proclamation signing at the Virginia Executive Mansion Nov. 18.

Public Service Announcements

In addition to these events, ACR is conducting a nation-wide public service announcement campaign with 30 second radio spots urging at-risk individuals to have an annual lung cancer screening. In the first two weeks of November, 250 airings on 85 stations nationwide reached an audience of 1.4 million.

For more information or if you have questions, contact Tiffany Gowen, ACR Director of Patient and Family Center Care.