On the Road to Stopping Lung Cancer

IN A GROUNDBREAKING effort to combat lung cancer, the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center and IU Health launched Indiana’s first mobile lung screening program this spring — in the form of a 40-foot truck equipped with a CT scanner.

Made possible by a generous gift from the Tom and Julie Wood Family Foundation, the mobile unit will bring life-saving screenings directly to Hoosiers, including those in some of the state’s most medically underserved areas.

The program will offer a convenient, accessible way to detect lung cancer early, when it’s most treatable. It will focus on screening-eligible, high-risk individuals, particularly those ages 50 to 80 who have a history of smoking. This includes anyone who smoked at least one pack a day for 20 years and who now smokes or has quit within the past 15 years. The program will coordinate follow-up care for patients in their local communities.

This year alone, the unit is expected to provide roughly 2,000 scans.

"Make no mistake, this mobile lung screening program will save lives and save dreams. We know that we can significantly reduce mortality by diagnosing lung cancer early," said Nasser Hanna, MD, the Tom and Julie Wood Family Foundation Professor of Lung Cancer Clinical Research at the IU School of Medicine. "Thanks to the generosity of the Wood family, we are making ongoing progress against lung cancer and bringing life-saving screening to Hoosiers across the state."

The Wood family has been long-time advocates for lung cancer research and treatment. Julie Wood, whose late husband Tom succumbed to lung cancer in 2010, said funding for the program is among a series of gifts made in memory of her husband. Most recently, a $20 million gift established the Tom and Julie Wood Center for Lung Cancer Research at the IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, but early detection can significantly improve survival rates. Low-dose CT screenings can reduce mortality by up to 20%.

To learn how you can support lung cancer research, contact Amber Kleopfer Senseny at 317-278-4510 or akleopfe@iu.edu.