11 Strategies For Improving Lung Cancer Outcomes

Originally written by:

Mary Horrigan Connors Center
For Women’s Health and Gender Biology

Originally published from the article:

Out of The Shadows: Women and Lung Cancer

1. Increase public awareness of risk factors, incidence, mortality rates and screening and treatment options for women and men.

2. Reverse the stigma of lung cancer among the public, caregivers and clinicians througheducation, dialogue and awareness.

3. Invest in research on sex differences in lung cancer and facilitate translation into clinical practice.

4. Enable federal funding of lung cancer research across the spectrum of the disease, emphasizing early detection and research on why and how the disease progresses in different populations. Improve inter-agency coordination to maximize results.

5. Refine screening technologies, including radiological and biomarker tests, to detect the deadliest cancers while still in the earliest stages. Investments in computer-aided detection and biomarkers tests that utilize blood, urine, sputum and breath are essential.

6. Advance early detection protocols through pilot programs, patient and provider education, and reimbursement policies.

7. Encourage individuals at high risk of lung cancer – including former smokers, first degree relatives of lung cancer patients, and those with protracted exposures to lung carcinogens such as Agent Orange, radon or asbestos – to speak with their doctors about the risks and benefits of screening.

8. Support research and development of early-stage, targeted therapies to improve survival rates and facilitate the development of personalized treatment.

9. Promote genetic testing of tumors as a routine diagnostic tool so that more patients can benefit from new therapies that target specific genetic mutations.

10. Eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in lung cancer through research on targeted treatment of individual tumors, improved health care access and culturally competent public health interventions.

11. Expand advocacy efforts through outreach, collaboration and coordination among policy leaders, clinicians, researchers, patients and lung cancer advocates.