Long-time smokers can significantly reduce their risk of lung cancer, one of the most common and deadly types, if they stop smoking and get screened for lung cancer, said St. Luke’s thoracic surgeon Meredith Harrison, MD. November is National Lung Cancer Awareness Month.

To help people reduce their risk, St. Luke’s University Health Network offers a smoking cessation program, a support group for those attempting to quit and a comprehensive lung cancer screening program to identify the presence of lung cancer.

“Lung cancer screening has been shown to save lives and is so important in detecting early cancers,” said Dr. Harrison, medical director for St. Luke’s Network for Lung Cancer Screening and Prevention. “Survival rates of stage I lung cancers are greater than 90%, whereas advanced cancers are much harder to treat.”

Dr. Harrison, of St. Luke’s Thoracic Surgical Associates in Stroudsburg and Bethlehem, treats conditions and injuries of the chest, including the lungs.

St. Luke’s Pulmonary and Critical Care team offers a low-dose CT screening for adults aged 50 to 80, who have a history of heavy smoking.

“Patients don’t realize that lung cancer is mostly a silent cancer — most patients have no symptoms associated with it,” she said. “That’s why the CT scan is so important. This is the best test available to find cancers. If a cancer is found early, it can be treated and often cured!”

“Just like any cancer, the earlier it is detected and treated, the better the outcome for the patient,” said St. Luke’s pulmonologist Nicole Yoder, DO. “The low-dose CT screening is designed to pick up small lung cancers before they have had time to spread.”

Dr. Yoder is the chair of critical care and the interim chief of pulmonary medicine. She cares for critically ill patients in the hospital and works closely with their families.

To qualify for the screening, patients must have a history of 20 pack years within the past 15 years. To calculate the number of pack years, multiply the number of packs smoked by the number of years. So, if someone has smoked a pack of cigarettes each day for 20 years, or two packs for 10 years, they have 20 pack years.

St. Luke’s currently screens more than 4000 patients per month, Dr. Harrison said. Then, a team of radiologists, thoracic surgeons and pulmonologists review the CT scans and determine how to treat the findings appropriately.

Excluding skin cancer, lung cancer is the second most common type of cancer for men — second only to prostate — and women — second only to breast cancer. It is by far the leading causes of cancer death, accounting for about one in five cancer deaths and more than colon, breast, and prostate cancers combined, according to the American Cancer Society.

Quitting smoking will not only reduce your lung cancer risk but will improve your overall health.

Dr. Harrison sees patients in the Stroudsburg and Bethlehem offices of St. Luke’s Thoracic Surgical Associates. To make an appointment, call 484-526-3950. To schedule an appointment with a St. Luke’s Pulmonary & Critical Care Associates physician, call 484-526-3890.

Stop Smoking on The Great American Smokeout or Any Day

Thursday, Nov. 21 is the Great American Smokeout hosted by the American Cancer Society.

The event encourages smokers to make a plan to quit or stop on that day. Smoking is the leading cause of death and illness in the world and accounts for an estimated 480,000 deaths a year.

When you’re ready to quit, take advantage of the St. Luke’s Tobacco Cessation Program, which uses a comprehensive approach to empower you with the tools and skills you need to take control of your health — without any shame, guilt or pressure.

Smoking cessation counselors work with you to create an individualized treatment plan so they can live tobacco-free.

The program offers multiple options such as in-person and virtual visits, one-on-one or class settings, and access to free nicotine replacement therapy (patches, gum, and lozenges) for those that qualify.

Also, St. Luke’s Virtual Smoking Cessation Support Group is open to anyone who has quit smoking, is currently quitting or thinking about it. The St. Luke’s Smoking Cessation Coordinator, a tobacco treatment specialist certified by NAADAC (National Association for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselors), leads the program via Microsoft Teams. Sessions last up to 60 minutes.

For more information, contact our Program Coordinator at 484-658-2436.