“Radon exposure is the second leading cause of lung cancer...The bottom line is - anyone with lungs can get lung cancer." — Lance Boucher, AVP and State Public Policy, American Lung Association

Most Americans know that smoking is the number one cause of lung cancer in the United States, but many still don't know that radon exposure is the second leading cause. In honor of November Lung Cancer Awareness Month, we've listed news on a few ways people around the country are promoting awareness. What will you do?

SavedByTheScan.org encourages early detection of lung cancer
Free online tool helps determine eligibility for low dose CT scan Source: Joy Hollowell WABI News, MAINE

Maine has the 6th highest rate of new lung cancer cases in the United States, according to the Maine Lung Cancer Coalition. 75% of those cases are detected late and are often not treatable.  

According to a new report by the American Lung Association, only about 10% of adults surveyed understand that lung cancer is among the most likely cancers to affect women. Only 36% know that lung cancer screening is now available for early detection in those at high risk. The American Lung Association is hoping its SavedByTheScan.org program can help change that statistic. READ MORE

Lung Cancer Risks—7 in 10 Iowa homes have a hazardous radon level Source: MercyOne Health, IOWA

The Iowa Radon Survey by Iowa Department of Public Health finds Iowa has the largest percentage of homes above the US EPA’s action level. "Everyone in Iowa knows smoking cigarettes causes cancer, but many people are not aware that radon exists, let alone in high levels in their homes. They may be inhaling it unknowingly and that causes cancer," explains Neil Horning, MD, a specialist in pulmonary and critical care medicine at MercyOne Des Moines Pulmonary and Infectious Disease Care. "We have patients, with no other risk factors, develop lung cancer from the high radon levels in their house’s basement or at their jobs.” READ MORE

With history of radon reports and studies, CR3 raises bar on advocacy
Source: Citizens for Radioactive Radon Reduction (CR3),  ILLINOIS  CR3 will advocate for the justification of low-dose CT Scans for patients in high-risk radon gas areas with a new "Do The Ask" campaign. Elevated levels of radon in homes have been recognized as a potential public health threat since the mid 1980’s when Stanley Watras, a worker at the Limerick Nuclear Power Plant, located in eastern Pennsylvania, set off a radiation detector upon entering the nuclear power plant in 1984. Yet radon-related lung cancer now kills over 21,000 people per year in the US.

The studies to make a case for considering radon gas as a major oppressor are there," says Jackie Nixon, CR3’s Pennsylvania radon advocate and stage one lung cancer survivor. "It's time to start bridging the gap by tying the exposure to elevated levels of radioactive radon to the necessity of low-dose CT scans for at risk individuals. My cancer was found early, the tumor removed; and I didn't even need chemotherapy, radiation or medication! This can be done for many which would reduce deaths and medical costs." READ MORE