CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances offering free lung cancer screenings to qualified patients

CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances Health System is offering free CT lung cancer screenings to qualified patients, beginning Nov. 1.

The scans are made possible due to a grant received by the health system and will take place at the CHRISTUS Healthpark on Troup Highway in Tyler.

“The idea, like with other cancers, is that if you catch it early, the survival rate is markedly improved,” said Dr. Jonathan Henderson, chief of pulmonology at CHRISTUS Mother Frances Hospital – Tyler. “These screening can either verify that a patient does not have issues or help us identify an area of concern in its early stages.”

The scans are limited to the first 75 patients who meet the following criteria:

• Between 50-80 years of age
• Currently smoke or have quit smoking within the last 15 years
• Have historically smoked at least 20 packs per year

Patients do not need a referral from a physician to qualify. However, patients must participate in a “shared decision” visit with a provider. These visits will determine if the patient qualified for the screening and provide the patient with information about the screening to make an informed decision.

The scans coincide with November’s designation as Lung Cancer Awareness Month. The National Cancer Institute estimates that more than 125,000 Americans will die this year from lung cancer. This is the highest number of cancer deaths for any type of cancer, accounting for about one in five of all cancer deaths in the United States.

“Nearly 15 million Americans that fall into those categories that we highly recommend get a lung cancer screening,” Henderson said. “Unfortunately, the national screening rate of that group is only about 6%, so the health care industry is working hard to encourage more screenings.”

Upon completion of the shared decision visit with their provider, patients can call (903) 606-2537 to schedule their screening.