In the Bluegrass, more than 10,000 people die from cancer each year, with lung cancer being one of the most common cancers in the state. Nationally, Kentucky has the highest rate of new lung cancer diagnoses in the nation with 84.8 people per 100,000 being diagnosed each year.
“Kentucky has the highest prevalence of lung cancer in the United States,” said Jennifer Finch, Director of Clinical Integration at Med Center Health. “We want to change that, and our new Lung Nodule Program creates new hope for at-risk patients. We have new technology with ION bronchoscopy that allows us to biopsy nodules at a much smaller size than what we have historically been able to do, so we are now able find much smaller nodules and treat them hopefully at a stage one when there is a 70% to 90% survivability rate.”
The Lung Nodule Program’s goal is to detect lung nodules at the earliest stages to either prevent serious issues before they occur or to treat concerns quickly by offering a variety of options tailored to your specific diagnosis. Our specialists are experts in their fields and have access to the latest treatment options and technologies, right here, close to home.
Med Center Health’s Lung Nodule Program consists of a team of 11 providers, including pulmonologists, radiation oncologists, medical oncologists, and cardiothoracic surgeons. Together, this team of providers has more than 200 years of clinical experience in a wide variety of disciplines. Every Friday, this team meets together to view and discuss any patient that may need further examination.
“We gather all of the cases we are going to be discussing that day or seen in clinic that day,” said Dr. Rodney Steff, Pulmonologist at Western Kentucky Heart & Lung Associates. “We as a group ask, ‘What does that patient need next? Do they need a CT scan? Do they need a PET scan? Do they need a blood test, or do we need to go straight to surgery?’ We’re all in agreement on that plan and then we send the patient for any testing they may need, so by the time they actually sit in the room in front of the physician, we already know what’s going on, what our plan is, and how we’re going to treat and diagnose the patient.”
The Med Center Health Lung Nodule Program is here to investigate images to determine the cause of nodules and if they might need further testing. We work with the patient’s primary care doctor to make arrangements for the patient to come to our clinic to meet with our specialists so that together we may learn more about what types of care might be needed.
The best way to treat lung cancer is to find it early and to treat quickly. With Med Center Health’s new Lung Nodule Program and ION Bronchoscopy technology, patients now have an even better chance of surviving lung cancer.
To learn more about Med Center Health’s Lung Nodule Program, visit: MedCenterHealth.org/LungNoduleProgram.
-submitted by Med Center Health
