January 19, 2024
Machias and Calais – Down East Community and Calais Community Hospitals are proud to announce that both facilities will begin offering low dose lung cancer screenings in February.
Our highly skilled technologists provide our community with the capability to screen eligible candidates in hopes of capturing an abnormality before it becomes a problematic diagnosis. Screening is when a healthcare provider looks for a disease before symptoms arise. They screen for diseases that are easier to treat, and potentially cure, when detected early such as breast cancer, colon cancer, and lung cancer. Lung cancer, like some other cancers, does not usually cause noticeable symptoms until the disease is advanced. When it is detected in its earliest stages, it may be curable. When it is discovered in more advanced stages, it is often incurable and is the number one cause of cancer related deaths worldwide.
In Washington County, lung cancer is the leading type of cancer deaths and has the highest incidence of new cancer cases – both statistics falling into the category of significantly worse than the state or national average.
Not everyone should undergo lung cancer screening. You should talk with your healthcare provider about the benefits of low dose lung cancer screening and how lung cancer screening might impact you. The discussion about whether you undergo screening should involve the following questions:
What is your risk of developing lung cancer?
Would you want to undergo additional diagnostic procedures if a suspicious nodule is identified?
Would you want treatment for lung cancer if it is diagnosed?
Are you healthy enough to undergo other procedures and therapies if you are diagnosed with lung cancer?
Talk to your provider today about the benefits of low dose lung cancer screening. It is a conversation worth having and it could save your life.