by Tom Wilemon

Kim Sandler, MD, associate professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, has been named co-chair of the Lung Cancer Screening Steering Committee for the American College of Radiology (ACR).

Among her duties is to advocate for people at risk for lung cancer to undergo screening with a CT scan, a painless and noninvasive procedure that can be lifesaving, especially when the disease is diagnosed at an early stage. People between the ages of 50 and 80 with a 20 (or more) pack-year smoking history who are currently smoking or who have quit within the past 15 years are eligible for the low-dose CT screening.

A priority of the committee is to make lung screening accessible to more people.

“I am honored and excited to work with the ACR in this leadership role. Screening for lung cancer saves lives, and it is imperative that we continue a multidisciplinary approach to raise awareness and improve enrollment in lung screening programs,” said Sandler.

The American Cancer Society estimates that last year about 236,740 people in the United States will be diagnosed with lung cancer, and about 130,180 will die.

Although thousands of people have undergone lung screens at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, many thousand more qualify. According to the Tennessee State Cancer Plan, 22.6% of adults ages 18 and older currently use tobacco, compared to the national rate of 17.1%. One of every 11 men in the state will develop lung cancer, and one in 14 will die from it, according to “Cancer in Tennessee,” a report issued by the Tennessee Department of Health. Among women, one in 14 will develop lung cancer and one in 20 will die from it.

Founded in 1923, the American College of Radiology represents more than 41,000 diagnostic and interventional radiologists, radiation oncologists, nuclear medicine physicians and medical physicists.