Most people don’t find out they have lung cancer until it is too late.

However, if caught early enough, 85 percent of lung cancers are treatable with surgery.

Dr. James Willey, lung cancer expert and UT professor of medicine, will present information on lung cancer and life-saving CT scans at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 18 in the Eleanor N. Dana Cancer Center at The University of Toledo Medical Center

The free, public lecture is part of the Tie One On Awareness Lecture Series hosted by the Dana Cancer Center.

“It is important to be talking about this because lung cancer screenings have been shown to reduce deaths from lung cancer by more than 20 percent,” Willey said. “In addition, just this year, Medicare has decided to reimburse people for the cost of lung cancer screenings.

The screenings, which are offered at the Lung Nodule Clinic at UTMC, are reimbursable for people who are 55 to 75 years of age with a heavy smoking history. This includes people who smoked at least a pack a day (20 cigarettes) for 15 years.

Willey said lung cancer is so deadly because it is typically not caught early enough to be cured by surgical means due to lung cancer not causing symptoms until it is very advanced. Fortunately, a CT scan can detect a cancer tumor at a very early stage while it is surgically curable, Willey said.

Each person who attends the lecture will be entered into a drawing for tickets to an upcoming sporting event or a gift certificate for spa services. To reserve a spot, email christopher.kosinski@utoledo.edu.

The Tie One On Cancer Awareness Lecture Series continues this summer. Upcoming Thursday lectures will be:

• July 16 — Dr. Arun Baskara, UT assistant professor of surgery, will share his expertise on colon cancer.
• Aug. 20 — Dr. Krishna Reddy, UT assistant professor of radiation oncology, will discuss radiation oncology as a cancer treatment option.

Media Coverage
The Blade (June 16, 2015)

Tags: The University of Toledo Medical Center (UTMC)