PENNSYLVANIA, USA — A new report recently released by the surgeon general warns about the ongoing dangers of cigarettes. The American Lung Association suggests combating this issue by getting screened for lung cancer.
"Lung cancer screening is an important tool, just like we use mammograms for breast cancer and colonoscopies for colon cancer. Lung cancer screening can be ordered by pulmonologists and family physicians, PCPs to make sure that we are finding all these stage cancers," said Dr. Ranasuriya, a pulmonologist at UPMC.
Dr. Ganga Ranasuriya is a pulmonologist at UPMC in Williamsport. She emphasizes that adults aged 50 to 80 who have smoked a pack of cigarettes daily for 20 years or more should get a CT scan. This scan can detect small spots or nodules in the lungs.
"A lung nodule is an abnormal growth within the lung tissue, and they are very, very common. Not all lung nodules are problematic; most of them are benign, meaning noncancerous; sometimes, they turn out to be cancerous," explained Dr. Ranasuriya.
Once these spots are identified, they are sent to a pulmonologist for further evaluation. If the spots are growing larger or are suspicious, Dr. Ranasuriya says a biopsy may be necessary. This is where robotic bronchoscopy is used for diagnosis.
"So the benefit of robotic bronchoscopy, which is a new technology that we are using at UPMC Williamsport, is that we can do these procedures to diagnose cancers precisely."
Lung cancer is often asymptomatic in the early stages, meaning patients may not show any symptoms until the later stages. Dr. Ranasuriya explains that the goal is to detect lung cancer early before it spreads.
"If we are able to diagnose early lung cancer stages, stage 1 cancers, and those are potentially curable, excellent cure rate, and excellent 5-year and beyond survival. So we try to find these early."
If you meet the criteria for lung cancer screening, talk to your primary care physician.