CHI Memorial, in partnership with GO2 for Lung Cancer, announces the addition of a second Breathe. Easy. mobile lung CT coach.
Officials said, "The revolutionary concept takes an important cancer screening out into the communities where people live and work, reducing common barriers to health care like transportation and time away from work. The first Breathe.Easy. mobile coach was introduced in 2018. Since then, more than 10,000 scans have been done on the mobile coach as it has traveled thousands of miles throughout Middle and Southeast Tennessee and North Georgia.
With the addition of the second mobile coach, the impact will multiply as the program will be able to reach even more underserved communities and provide potentially life-saving screenings to those who need them most.
"CHI Memorial partnered with GO2 for Lung Cancer to bring the new mobile coach to the Chattanooga area. GO2 for Lung Cancer was founded by patients and survivors and is dedicated to increasing survival for those at risk, diagnosed, and living with lung cancer. The organization, along with local donors, provided funding to purchase the new Breathe.Easy. mobile lung CT coach."
The first screening event for the new mobile coach will be at the Bethlehem Center’s Southside Juneteenth Jubilee, 200 W. 38th St. in Chattanooga, this Saturday. Screenings are available from 1-4 p.m.
Officials said, "Lung cancer screening is a test to look for signs of lung cancer in otherwise healthy people. The low-dose CT scan shows a 3-D image of your lungs that is clearer and more detailed than regular x-rays, allowing doctors to diagnose lung cancer at its earliest stage, before there are any symptoms.
"This is when lung cancer is most curable. The whole process takes less than ten minutes and there is
no need to do anything special to prepare for the screening.
"The low-dose CT lung cancer scan has been shown to improve survival by 20 percent according to
The National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) by the National Cancer Institute (NCI).
Factors that put you at high risk of developing lung cancer include age 50 or greater, smoking history, family history of cancer, exposure to cancer causing agents (asbestos, diesel fumes, Radon, coal smoke, soot, etc.)
"Private insurance companies cover lung cancer screening for high-risk individuals. Medicare and Medicaid also cover lung cancer screening. Grant funds are available for eligible uninsured and under-insured people to have the low-dose lung CT screening. A cash-pay option is available for those who do not meet insurance criteria but want to be screened.
"If you feel you are at risk, call us at 423-495-LUNG (5864) to discuss if a lung screening is right for you or to schedule an appointment.
"CHI Memorial and GO2 for Lung Cancer are grateful for support from AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers Squibb and Merck."