Efforts by U.S. lawmakers and public health officials to boost awareness of the importance of lung cancer screening gathered steam after the U.S. Senate passed a bipartisan resolution for the third year in a row designating November 2022 as National Lung Cancer Awareness Month and expressing support for the early detection and treatment of lung cancer. S.Res.863, which was spearheaded by Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla) and passed by unanimous consent on December 7th expands on the previous resolutions by emphasizing the need for efforts to increase awareness of screening among veterans, women, and racial minorities.

 

The move by the U.S. Senate adds to a growing movement of local, state, and national leaders expressing support for lung cancer screening. Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf and Mayors Jane Castor of Tampa FL, Gina-Louise Sciarra of Northampton MA, and Robert Sullivan of Brockton MA recently issued public service announcements to increase lung cancer screening awareness and encourage those at high risk of lung cancer to get screened. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in the U.S., killing more than 130,000 a year. The majority of lung cancers are diagnosed once the disease has spread beyond the lungs, for which the five-year survival rate is just 7 percent. The 5-year-survival rate for localized lung cancer is 61 percent. However, only 19 percent of lung cancers are diagnosed at this stage.

 

Lung cancer screening could cut lung cancer deaths by almost half, saving roughly 60,000 lives each year in the United States. Yet fewer than 6 percent of those eligible are screened. In comparison, up to 77 percent of eligible people are screened for breast, cervical, and colon cancer. This year’s Senate resolution emphasizes the need to increase lung cancer screening rates among high-risk Americans.

 

The American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative (ALCSI; www.alcsi.org) worked closely with Senator Smith and her office to draft S.Res.863. As a leading organization working to increase awareness of and access to lung cancer screening, we are proud to support this resolution illustrating the importance of lung cancer screening. We are deeply grateful for the leadership of Senator Smith and the support of Senator Rubio to increase awareness of lung cancer and lung cancer screening. We are committed to continuing the important work of collaborating with

leaders and communities at the national, state, and local levels to achieve the goals outlined in S.Res.863.

 

You can read a copy of the resolution here.

 

About the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative:

The American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative (ALCSI; www.alcsi.org) is a 501(c)3 non-profit working to increase awareness of lung cancer screening and help individuals at high risk for lung cancer get screened. The work of the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative focuses on teaching communities and healthcare providers about the importance of the early detection of lung cancer through screening and working with leaders at the national, state, and local levels to increase awareness of and access to lung cancer screening. To learn more about the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative and support the work they are doing, visit www.alcsi.org or follow them on Twitter @AmLungCSI, Facebook @americanlungcancerscreeninginitiative, or Instagram @amlungcsi. If you are interested in

working with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to increase awareness of lung cancer and lung cancer screening in your community, email info@alcsi.org.