Charleston Healthcare Community Joins American Lung Association to Advance Lung Cancer Care

On Tuesday, October 8, dozens of local healthcare providers gathered with the American Lung Association in South Carolina to discuss the latest advancements in lung cancer identification and treatment. The event, South Carolina Community Connections: Lung Cancer Patient, Identification, Screening and Biomarker Testing, was held at the Queen Street Playhouse.

“Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. But there is hope. Research has fueled advancements in detection and treatment in the past decade, increasing the survival rate by 44 percent,” said Michael A. Spandorfer, MD, Medical Director of Interventional Pulmonology and Advanced Bronchoscopy at Roper St. Francis Healthcare and physician with Lowcountry Lung and Critical Care.

Dr. Spandorfer was joined by:

• Elizabeth Kline, MD - Thoracic Surgeon, Roper St. Francis Physician Partners Thoracic Surgery and member of the Lung Association’s South Carolina Leadership Board
• Christopher Rangel, MD - Oncologist, MUSC Hollings Cancer Center
• James Ravenel, MD - Thoracic Radiologist, Charleston Radiologists, PA; Thoracic Oncology Radiologist for Trident Medical Center

Low-dose CT lung cancer screening test is key to saving lives because it detects lung cancer early when it is more likely to be curable. Yet only 6.8% of South Carolinians who are at high risk were screened. Visit SavedByTheScan.org to learn about low-dose CT lung cancer screening tests and take the quiz to see if you should get screened.

Biomarker testing, which looks for changes in the tumor's DNA, can lead to more targeted treatment options with fewer side effects because they focus on what is exactly wrong with the cancer cell, instead of killing normal, healthy cells too. People with lung cancer and their caregivers can learn more if comprehensive biomarker testing is right for them by visiting Lung.org or discuss with their healthcare provider.

Event attendees included healthcare providers in primary care, medical oncology, pulmonary, thoracic surgery, fellows and medical students. The event was presented by AstraZeneca.

Get involved and help the mission of American Lung Association. The LUNG FORCE Run/Walk at Folly Beach County Park is coming up on Saturday, November 9, which is National Lung Cancer Screening Day. Learn more and register LUNGFORCE.org/Charleston.