Free Lung Cancer Screenings Offered By Cancer Local Treatment Group
Online, June 26, 2014 (Newswire.com) - Northwest Arkansas residents have the opportunity to receive a free lung cancer screening.
The Center for Chest Care, comprised of Highlands Oncology Group (HOG), MANA, Cardiovascular Surgical Associates of NWA, and Hope Cancer Resources, will be offering free lung cancer screenings for those at high risk for lung cancer.
Those with a family history of lung cancer, who have been exposed to environmental or occupational cancer causing substances or those 50-years or older who have smoke for 15 or more years may be eligible for a free screening and are especially encouraged to schedule an appointment.
Recent research has found that lung cancer screening with low-radiation dose CT scans significantly lowers the risk of lung cancer-related death by 20 percent because of early discovery, according to the Center for Chest Care.
The American Society of Clinical Oncology guidelines now suggest annual screenings with low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) for smokers and former smokers at high risk for developing lung cancer, according to Lungcancer.org, a service of CancerCare, a non-profit organization providing free, professional support to anyone coping with lung cancer.
The high risk factors of developing lung cancer include: smoking, exposure to secondhand smoke, exposure to radon gas, exposure to asbestos and other chemicals and those with a family history of lung cancer, according to the Mayo Clinic.
The Center for Chest Care is the only lung cancer screening program certified by the Lung Cancer Alliance in the State of Arkansas and the only non-hospital program certified nationwide.
Lung cancer causes more deaths than the next three most common cancers combined, which includes colon, breast and pancreatic cancer, according to the American Lung Association (ALA). An estimated 159,260 Americans are expected to die from lung cancer in 2014, accounting for approximately 27 percent of all cancer deaths, according to the ALA.
About 228,190 new cases of lung cancer will be diagnosed in the United States in 2013, according to American Cancer Society statistics.
Learn more about The Center for Chest Care at: www.screenforlungcancer.com
