By Carrie Wingate
NEW YORK, Nov 11 (Reuters Health) -- They'll be running in marathons, playing in golf tournaments, handing out leaflets, and telling their stories. On Friday, Lung Cancer Awareness Day, thousands of people across America will be wearing clear "awareness ribbons" to remind you that lung cancer will kill 160,000 people this year -- more than breast, prostate and colorectal cancer combined.
The Alliance for Lung Cancer Advocacy, Support, and Education (ALCASE) first marked Lung Cancer Awareness Day three years ago. Although this disease is the biggest cancer killer in America and in the world, they note, "there are no races for a cure, no movies of the week and, until now, no lung cancer awareness ribbons." ALCASE designed the clear ribbon, along the lines of those worn for AIDS and breast cancer, "to represent the hundreds of thousands of people who are part of the 'invisible' population of people diagnosed with lung cancer."
"There is a stigma associated with lung cancer that's not seen with other forms of cancer. Patients are blamed for their disease, because most lung cancer patients are smokers or ex-smokers," said Diane Blum, executive director of Cancer Care, in an interview with Reuters Health. Because of this stigma, patients "have a real sense of helplessness, hopelessness, and isolation." Cancer Care works to build awareness of lung cancer and provide support and advocacy.
ALCASE has distributed lung cancer awareness ribbons to hospitals, health centers, individuals, and advocacy and support groups across the country. Meanwhile, Cancer Care has teamed up with the Oncology Nursing Society to provide information and resources about lung cancer. On Friday, 75 nurses will be available to answer questions from the public. You can contact them by calling toll-free, 1-877-LUNG-777, or submit questions at a special website: http://www.lungcancer.org.
Blum noted that the public has little knowledge of the progress that has been made in lung cancer detection and treatment. Cancer researcher Dr. Claudia Henschke of the New York Hospital agrees. "I think lung cancer has been a silent disease. People don't talk about it, and yet it's the number one cancer killer," she told Reuters Health. "There is a feeling that there's nothing you can do, but this awareness day will help show that there is a lot you can do, in addition to smoking cessation."
Henschke has worked on developing early detection methods for lung cancer. She noted that while chest x-rays cannot detect cancer in its early stages, early results from using computed tomography (CT) scans has been very promising. "Our research shows that with CT scans, you can find lung cancer at a very early stage -- when it's the size of a grain of rice. This technology is going to bring lung cancer detection out of the dark ages and into the new millennium."
While lung cancer screening with CT scans is not yet recommended by the National Cancer Institute or the American Cancer Society -- who are waiting for more long-term research findings -- cancer experts and lung cancer patients strongly advocate its use for those at risk, especially smokers and ex-smokers.
Selma Rosen of East Norwich, New York, is a lung cancer survivor whose disease was diagnosed and treated early. "I had to fight for every stage of my treatment and follow-up," she told Reuters Health. "Many doctors just want to let it go. But I was very fortunate, and while I'm here and alive I'd like people to benefit from my experience. Every individual that has any inkling that they might be at risk should prevail upon their doctors for a CT scan -- and they'll really need to prevail upon them, because most doctors are reluctant to do it."
Blum and Henschke both noted that physicians are becoming more willing to help their at-risk patients get early screening, even though insurance plans do not cover it. "People who are at risk should talk to their doctors, and look around to find out where there are ongoing studies and enroll," Henschke suggested, noting that many large-scale studies are underway to assess the effectiveness of early screening.
According to the American Cancer Society, over half of lung cancer patients can survive if their disease is treated before it spreads to other organs, but only 15% of cases are found this early. Early screening, Henschke and Blum pointed out, could bring survival rates for lung cancer closer to those for breast cancer, which has an 80% five-year survival rate. But, noted Blum, "this is a movement that needs to be driven by individuals. As more people at risk demand early screening, we'll start to see the official recommendations change, and the insurance companies willing to pay for this essential service."
