Nearly 227,000 people will be diagnosed with lung cancer this year in the United States— a diagnosis that often comes too late, according to one Billings doctor.
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"That’s one of the pitfalls of lung cancer is that it usually doesn’t give you signs or symptoms until its advanced, so often when patients get diagnosed with lung cancer and when they develop symptoms its already stage three or stage four," says Dr. Bruno Rodrigues, a pulmonary and critical care physician at the Billings Clinic.
November is Lung Cancer Awareness month-- the leading cause of cancer deaths for both men and women.
Smokers are especially at risk— the reason why doctors say they could be a candidate for screening.
“That would include people between 50 and 80 who have smoked at least one pack of day for 20 years and have quit within 15 years,” says Rodrigues.
The process involves a low-dose radiation scan once a year until the age of 80 or until a person has quit smoking for 15 consecutive years. But they must be committed to a yearly scan and doing something about the cancer, if found.
“And that’s one of the problems we have with lung cancer screening—it’s adherence. The patients will come get one or two scans, and that’s it. They won’t come back, and then you are not getting the benefit of a mortality reduction,” says Rodrigues.
While smoking is the cause in about 80 percent of lung cancer cases, it can also strike those who have never picked up a cigarette.
Radon, an odorless radioactive gas that is commonly found at high levels in Montana, is the second leading cause of lung cancer.
It can seep into your home from the foundation.
“Well, every house has a radon. It’s a just a matter of what level. I’d say one out of every seven houses in high,” says Rick Shaver, with Certified Radon Services in Billings.
The radon can be removed from a home by drilling a hole in the slab, then using a fan to suck the air from under the house outside through a vent.
“Just test. That’s the biggest thing. We can’t assume because one house is high that the next house next door is going to be high. Radon lives in pockets, so it’s all a matter of where that pocket is sitting in regards to the house,” says Shaver.
“If it’s higher than normal levels, you should certainly consider a mitigation system, which will, over time, reduce the chances of developing cancer,” says Rodrigues.
Click here for more information on radon in Montana and how to obtain a test kit for $5.
