New screening options for smokers and former smokers Ask The Doctor

If you’re a smoker who uses cigarettes now or gave them up years ago, you may be at greater risk of health problems, especially lung cancer. Yet many current and former smokers are unaware of a lung cancer screening that can save lives. “It’s a quick screening that can result in early detection,” says Benjamin Medina, MD, a thoracic and vascular surgeon at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) Hamilton’s Cancer Center. “Updated screening guidelines may mean you’re newly eligible to receive the test.”

How are lung cancer screenings done? They consist of an annual, lowdose CT scan. You lie on a table while an X-ray machine takes images of your lungs. The scan only takes about five minutes, is very low dose and is very safe. Insurance covers recommended lung cancer screenings in most cases.

What happens after images are taken?A radiologist looks for small lumps called nodules. These are not necessarily cancerous, but they can become cancerous over time. Depending on a nodule’s size and characteristics, your doctor may recommend having a biopsy; undergoing another CT scan in three to six months to see if the nodule has grown or changed; or waiting and having it reassessed at next year’s screening.

What if the test finds lung cancer?

Lung cancer is easier to treat or even cure when it’s detected early. If part of a lung has to be removed, earlier detection means the excised area will be smaller than if the cancer were found later. Taking out less lung helps preserve lung function. Early detection also means there is less chance the cancer has spread to other areas of the body. When lung cancer spreads, survival rates become much lower.

Who should undergo lung cancer screening? Patients should be 50 to 80 years old and currently smoke or have quit within the past 15 years. They also should have a 20 pack-year history or more of smoking. A pack-year is equivalent to smoking an average of one pack of cigarettes a day for a year. So if you smoked a pack a day for 20 years, that’s a 20 packyear history—and so is having smoked two packs a day for 10 years. These guidelines were updated in 2021.

Why did guidelines change? To increase screening opportunities for people who are at highest risk of lung cancer and reduce disparities. Broader eligibility should especially enhance early detection at younger ages among women and Black adults, who are likelier to develop lung cancer after less cumulative tobacco exposure.

How can RWJUH Hamilton help me quit smoking? Through RWJBarnabas Health’s Institute for Prevention and Recovery, we offer a 12-week program in which you’ll get a personalized plan, free nicotine patches and behavioral therapy that can help you manage challenges and prevent relapse. Someone will call you regularly to go over your goals and keep you on track. “It’s a wonderful program,” says Dr. Medina. For more information about Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton’s Lung Cancer Screening Program, call 855.RWJ.LUNG (855.795.5864).

RWJBarnabas Health and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton, together with Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey— the state’s only NCIDesignated Comprehensive Cancer Center— provide close-to-home access to the latest treatment options. For more information, call 844.CANCERNJ or visit www.rwjbh.org/beatcancer.

Coming up this month at RWJU Hospital Hamilton

For more information, call (609) 584-5900. To register for a program or for schedule changes go to rwjbh.org/ events.

WEDNESDAy, JUNE 7

Lung Cancer Screening-Who Qualifies and When to Get Screened. 5 to 6 p.m. Lung Screening Program Director, Dr. Eishan Patel and Program Manager Kaidlan Ricardo, CMA, BS-HA will discuss screening and early detection of lung cancer and treatment options.

TUESDAy, JUNE 13

Plant Based Protein to Power Your Workout. 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Plants are powerful and so are you! Learn to support strength and maintain healthful movement with plant-based sources of protein. Fee: $5. Taryn Krietzman, RDN.

WEDNESDAy, JUNE 14

New Developments in Hearing Aids-Computer Technology for your Ears. 10 to 11 a.m. Technological advances in hearing aids allow us to connect to our world in an exciting way! Join Dr. Lorraine Sgarlato , Au.D. and Mindy Staller Au.D. from Unitron Hearing to learn about the latest in treatment options. Hands-on demonstration available after the lecture.

Ask the Diabetes Coordinator. Noon to 1 p.m. Shesha Desai, PharmD, RPh, BC-ADM, will host an informative Q&A session on how to manage your diabetes.

What Can Hypnosis Do For Me? 6 to 7 p.m. Learn how hypnosis/hypnotherapy can access your own internal abilities. Matt Masiello, CCH will share how hypnosis programs are tailored to meet your specific needs. The program includes an overview of hypnotherapy, Q&A’s, and optional guided meditation/hypnosis.

TUESDAy, JUNE 20

Reiki? What is This “Reiki”? 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. You may have heard of the benefits of Reiki, but are still not sure what, exactly, it is or how it works. Come explore what energy work, including Reiki, can do for you. Patti McDougall, BSN, Integrative Therapies Nurse, Reiki Master/Teacher.

THURSDAy, JUNE 7

Safety and Security Awareness in Today’s World. 7 to 8:30 p.m. Learn about cybersecurity, internet scams and how to protect against identify theft, as well as about personal safety at home, in the community and in the work place. Bob Field Jr. Assistant VP of Support Services, Safety and Security at RWJBH Hamilton, is a respected security professional with over 35 years of military, federal law enforcement and private security experience. FREE.

Better Health Programs

Registration required for all programs. Must be a Better Health Member. Call (609) 584-5900 or go to rwjbh.org/events.

WEDNESDAy, JUNE 7

Let’s Talk, A Senior Social Group. Also June 14, 21, & 28; 10 to 11 a.m. Please join us for our ongoing program “Let’s Talk, a Senior Social Group,” gathering in a collaborative setting to exchange thoughts, feelings and experiences amongst peers. This is a safe zone designed to be welcoming and understanding of all attendees while exploring this season of our lives – the ups and the challenges. This group is a partnership between RWJ University Hospital Hamilton and the PsycHealth Associates here in Hamilton. This is a weekly program. Please feel free to attend one or all.

FRIDAy, JUNE 16

Tips on Looking Your Best at Any Age. 9:30 to 11 a.m. Join us for this New Program that is all about you – no models, no video. We are happy to welcome back Caterina Young, Owner blo Out Lounge & Color Bar. She will share with us makeup tricks to look your best and how to choose the right hairstyle for your face shape and how to maintain it. Be sure to register early.

FRIDAy,

June 23

Tea Party. 2 to 3:30 p.m. Pinkies up! Let’s talk tea and try some famously tasty pairings. Hats are encouraged.