County health departments, Rush-Copley team up to hold lung cancer awareness event

Lung Cancer Awareness Month is observed in November each year to raise awareness about lung cancer and the importance of early screening. The Kendall County Health Department and Rush Copley Medical Center in Aurora are partnering to host a lung cancer awareness event from 9 to 11 a.m. Nov. 2 at Waterford Place Cancer Resource Center, 1310 Waterford Drive in Aurora.

The Kane County Health Department also is participating in the event. Attendees can register by calling 888-352-7874 or visiting https://learn.rush.edu/8a2vJmt7/5a5ZQh7rjW3.

The event will feature speakers, including Ed Pickering, MD, a pulmonology specialist with RUSH MD Anderson Cancer Center. Topics will include smoking and its connection to lung cancer, the risks of living in a home with high levels of radon in the air, and the importance of screening for lung cancer.

Booths will be set up during the event to answer questions and provide lung cancer prevention, screening and resources. Hillary Knowles, a nurse practitioner and lung screening navigator at Rush Copley Medical Center, tries to bring awareness to the availability of screening for lung cancer.

“The idea is that even if there’s a small finding, we can treat you early and then that way we’re bringing the cancer death rates a lot lower,” she said. “Not a lot of people are aware of the availability of screening. There’s a ton of patients that are eligible for this. In the last two years that I’ve been in this role, we’ve done almost 1,000 scans and have identified 15 early cancers. The availability to screen has really been saving lives.”

About 125,070 men and women in the U.S. are expected to die this year from lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. It remains the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S., accounting for about one in five of all cancer deaths. Each year, more people die of lung cancer than of colon, breast and prostate cancers combined.

Smoking is the leading risk factor for lung cancer. The risk of developing lung cancer increases with both the amount and length of tobacco use. About 80% of lung cancer deaths are thought to result from smoking.

Michelle Hawley, the mental health assistant director for the Kendall County Health Department, said even vaping can increase the risk of lung cancer because of the high nicotine levels in vapes.

“We’re seeing less people smoking a traditional cigarette and we’re seeing a huge increase in vaping,” she said. “In the schools these days, they’re asking me to come in and talk to the kids about the dangers of vaping.”

Even if you don’t smoke, your risk of developing lung cancer increases if you are exposed to secondhand smoke. Secondhand smoke is the third most common cause of lung cancer in the U.S.

The American Lung Association estimates that secondhand smoke causes more than 41,000 deaths annually.

Radon gas exposure is the leading cause of lung cancer in nonsmokers, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Radon is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year.

Radon gas is an odorless, colorless gas that seeps out of the ground. When it seeps through cracks in a foundation or a basement floor, radon can concentrate to dangerous levels.

“It can increase your risk for lung cancer if you are exposed to this for long periods of time,” said Aaron Rybski, environmental health services director for the Kendall County Health Department. “It is very, very common in this area, where people are breathing this carcinogenic gas.”

He recommends people have their homes tested every few years for radon gas. The Kendall County Health Department sells radon testing kits for $7 if picked up in person.

“So many of us can try and take care of ourselves and eat right and exercise and not smoke and still end up with lung cancer because of this passive carcinogen that’s just collecting in your house over time,” Rybski said.

Those who attend the Nov. 2 event can take home large white ribbons to decorate with words of inspiration and hope. The ribbons are part of The White Ribbon Project.

“They are a nonprofit organization which tries to bring awareness to lung cancer in general,” Knowles said. “Anybody with lungs can get lung cancer.”

For more information about smoking cessation resources, radon and associated risks, contact the Kendall County Health Department at 630-553-9100 or go to kendallhealth.org. To learn more about lung cancer screening as well as cancer resources offered by Rush Copley Medical Center, contact the Rush Lung Cancer Screening Navigator at 630-978-4989, or go to rush.edu/lung-cancer-screening.