(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Thursday is the Great American Smokeout — when the American Cancer Society ramps up its efforts to persuade smokers to quit. This year, Advocate Aurora Health is also reminding smokers to get screened for lung cancer.
Dr. Monali Patel said nearly 90% of lung cancer cases are due to smoking. The Advocate Christ Medical Center oncologist pointed out the disease has a deadly history.
“Lung cancer is the leading cause of death, and the number of people who die from lung cancer are more than, combined, breast, prostate, and colorectal,” Patel said.
That doesn’t make quitting easier. Just ask Sharon Patton, a former smoker of 50 years. The 66-year-old south sider had lung cancer surgery in August at Christ.
“If I hadn’t went through this hospital situation, I probably still would be smoking,” Patton said. “That’s the honest-to-God truth.”
Patton said she still dreams about it, even though the surgery kept her from needing chemotherapy or radiation treatment. In fact, things went so smoothly that Patton thought she could resume normal activity right away.
“I was going to wash some clothes, so you know I was out of my mind,” the Washington Heights resident said. “They told me I couldn’t do that because I just had surgery, and it was major surgery. It just didn’t dawn on me how major it was.”
Even with lung cancer screening widely available, Patel said only about 15% – 20% of eligible patients do it.
Advocate recommends annual lung cancer screenings for people who are 50 to 77 years old and have smoked for 20 years.
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