BUFFALO, N.Y. — Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center will receive a grant to help establish the center as the leader of a national lung cancer screening registry.
On Friday, Congressman Brian Higgins announced Roswell Park was awarded $1.5 million in federal funding, which will be used to upgrade computed tomography (CT) equipment and purchase two new CT scanners.
“This couldn’t be more important right now as we continue to deal with the immediate and long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic – including individuals who put off their cancer screenings partially due to shuttered medical offices or safety concerns,” said Candace S. Johnson, PhD, President, CEO and M&T Presidential Chair in Leadership at Roswell Park. “We know that screening and early detection can blunt the impact of lung cancer on people’s lives. Thanks to Congressman Higgins, we can now put those resources to work both locally and across the country.”
The funding will help purchase a new CT scanner at Roswell's main location on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus as well as a new scanner for the Scott Bieler Amherst Center, expected to open in 2023.
The money will also allow for the creation of the first free publicly available lung cancer screening registry in the nation. The registry will help give the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) a more inclusive data set on lung cancer screening done across the country.
The registry will also help increase access to lung cancer screenings, raise awareness of testing and work to reduce health disparities in screening and lung cancer outcomes.
“When we go into churches and community centers, we so often find that people don’t even know that screening programs for lung cancer are available, or what their risk level for lung cancer is,” said Nikia Clark, Community Relations Coordinator with Roswell Park’s Community Outreach and Education program. “Everything we can do to inform those community members most likely to be affected by lung cancer and to reduce barriers to early detection will be a life-changing, life-saving benefit for our community.”
According to the National Cancer Institute, just about six percent of all eligible individuals receive recommended screenings each year.
The U.S. Preventative Services Task Force now recommends that all adults ages 50-80 who smoked a pack a day for 20 years or more and people that currently smoke or quit in the past 15 years receive an annual lung cancer screening.
