Screening offers hope for early detection of lung cancer

Ofelia O’Connor, a 75-year-old mother of four and grandmother of seven, was in top shape when she joined a research study for lung cancer detection at the Dorothy E. Schneider Cancer Center last fall.
The Burlingame resident was at the gym five days a week and feeling fine.

“I met the criteria for the study — at least 60 years of age and a history of at least 30 pack-years of smoking cigarettes,” she said.

Thirty pack-years means smoking one pack per day for 30 years or any equivalent in which years of smoking times packs smoked a day equals thirty.

Yet, she didn’t think the screening would prove positive.

“I was the picture of health — no weight loss, no fatigue or sleeping problems, none of the symptoms one would associate with cancer.”

When the diagnosis was stage I lung cancer, she was shocked.

“It was a blow to everyone — my doctor, my family and myself.”

According to Marie Rinaldi, R.N., Mills-Peninsula cancer nurse specialist, not experiencing symptoms early on is the main reason that lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States.

“Approximately 85 percent of lung cancers are diagnosed in advanced stages because people don’t experience any warning signs until then,” she said.

“The chances of surviving may improve when diagnosed early,” Rinaldi said. “Early lung cancer can be treated with surgery or a combination of surgery and other therapies. That was Mrs. O’Connor’s experience, and she has an excellent prognosis.”

Early detection has suffered from lack of an effective screening tool, Rinaldi said. “Mammograms have improved early detection of breast cancer, but there is not yet a proven tool for lung cancer.”

That is the reason for the Mills-Peninsula study, the nurse specialist said. “The goal is to determine if a low-dose CT scan is an effective test. Participants receive free scans and follow-up for two years.”

The study is part of larger research project called International Early Lung Cancer Action Project (I-ELCAP). Mills-Peninsula is the only site in the Bay Area and one of only four in California invited to participate. Barry Sheppard, M.D., is leadng the project.

Rinaldi will discuss risk factors, latest research and treatments of lung cancer at a Wellness Center lecture Nov. 11, 1 – 2 p.m. To register, call 696–5600.

“The main risk factors for lung cancer include tobacco use, exposure to second-hand smoke, radon, asbestos and other industrial and environmental agents and tuberculosis,” she said.
Mills-Peninsula is still accepting applications for study participants. For more information about the study, call 696–4479.