On Friday, November 9, McLaren Northern Michigan welcomed representatives from the Prevent Cancer Foundation’s Congressional Families Program to kick off Lung Cancer Awareness Month. McLaren Northern Michigan recently received a $25,000 grant from the Prevent Cancer Foundation to provide lung cancer screenings and education about lung cancer prevention.
Lisa McGovern, Executive Director of the Congressional Families Program and spouse of Massachusetts Congressman Jim McGovern, participated in the visit. Joining her were Colleen Ochoa Peters, spouse of Michigan Senator Gary Peters, Cindy Bergman, spouse of Michigan Congressman Jack Bergman, and Ellen Noghes, Cross Village resident and spouse of former Ambassador of Monaco to the United States.
The Prevent Cancer Foundation is the only U.S.-based non-profit organization solely dedicated to cancer prevention and early detection. The Congressional Families Program is a bipartisan effort to increase the public’s understanding of cancer prevention and early detection.
Through its community grants program, the Prevent Cancer Foundation supports projects focused on increasing cancer prevention and early detection in communities across the U.S. McLaren Northern Michigan is one of only twelve recipients selected through a competitive grants process.
McLaren Northern Michigan will use the grant to increase access to early lung cancer screening for high-risk patients, increase education about who should be screened, and provide resources for community members to quit tobacco use.
To identify lung cancer at an early stage when it can be cured and before symptoms present, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network’s evidence-based Lung Cancer Screening guidelines recommend Low Dose CT screenings for high-risk patients. The screening is initiated by a patient’s Primary Care Provider and provided through the Karmanos Cancer Institute at McLaren Northern Michigan. The Prevent Cancer Foundation grant will reduce barriers for patients who wish to access a screening and help local Primary Care Providers to implement the guidelines.
The grant will also increase enrollment in smoking cessation classes and provide education through community outreach and events during the coming year.
Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S., causing more than 438,000 deaths per year. Adult smoking rates in northern Michigan exceed the State of Michigan rate, ranging from 16% in Presque Isle County to 30% in Montmorency County.
For more information about McLaren Northern Michigan Foundation, call 231-487-3500.