An early lung cancer detection program will use the Sunshine Coast as one of its test sites.
The Terry Fox Research Institute (TFRI) and Canadian Partnership Against Cancer (CPAC) started the study to help screen people at high risk for lung cancer.
"We have been screening people in the Lower Mainland since October. Our trip to the Sunshine Coast is the first chance for people outside the Vancouver area to participate in this exciting study," said Suzan Ross, RN with the lung study.
The national project aims to screen 2,500 current and former smokers between the ages of 50 and 75 by giving them a questionnaire and blood and breath tests. May 3 to 5 Coast residents who fit the profile will be able to participate in the study.
"I really encourage people to take advantage of it," said Leena Wright who has been part of the study, travelling into Vancouver. "They're things you can't really ask your physician to do. It's non-invasive. There's nothing to it."
According to stats compiled by TFRI and CPAC, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in Canada and around the world killing 1.2 million people each year. Just 16 per cent of lung cancer patients survive five years or more because they are diagnosed too late. If the cancer is diagnosed and treated before it spreads, the five-year survival rate is more than 70 per cent.
"I call it the silent killer," Wright said because by the time symptoms show up it is too late.
Wright knows the heartache of losing a friend to lung cancer and as someone who smoked for most of her life, she said she takes comfort in the on-going testing.
People with abnormal cells are sometimes referred for a bronchoscopy and CAT-scan in addition to the preliminary testing.
At age 61, Wright is proud to say she has three months smoke-free under her belt with the aid of tips and support on the website www.quitnow.ca.
"I just went cold turkey. I'm so excited to be part of the study now as a non-smoker," she said, adding saving on transportation costs are a bonus.
While Ross said she is always encouraging smokers to quit, "50 per cent of newly diagnosed lung cancers are ex-smokers. The risk is still in place and quitting is not going to reverse it."
Ross said benefits of taking part in the study include two, in-depth years of being tracked and tested with technology and examinations their family doctor could not administer or even refer them for.
Ross said once the study is complete, researchers want to advise government bodies of the study outcomes and suggest how similar screening might be implemented into regular health care just like they are for prostate and breast cancer.
To apply to be part of the study, phone 1-888-675-8001, local 8088.
