“ You don ’ t want to screen 5,000 individuals just to find one cancer ,” Tremblay said . “ It ’ s just not efficient and there ’ s some harms with screening .”
Colton , 67 , said she likely would have been eligible for this new screening if it was around before she was diagnosed . But through her journey with lung cancer , including two recurrences and successful treatment after her first diagnosis , she ’ s also become an advocate .
Lung cancer kills more people each year than breast , colon and prostate cancer combined , with about 1,600 Albertans losing their lives to the disease each year . And Colton said the blame and shame that often surrounds a lung cancer diagnosis makes it even more difficult to cope .
“ People don ’ t pay attention to it because of the smoking stigma , except the problem is if you breathe , you can get lung cancer ,” she said .
“ We ’ re talking people . We ’ re not talking numbers . These are people ’ s lives .”
Bringing in standard screening , she said , should be one of the easiest steps in helping people take care of themselves , and save more lives .
“ I personally prefer being alive ,” she quipped . “ It ’ s much easier to speak to me .”
The lung cancer screening pilot started in September , and enrolment will run until March 2024 , with budget for 3,000 people to get screened . Doctors and nurse practitioners in the participating primary care networks can refer patients , but people can also ask about their doctors about eligibility .
Tremblay said the results will be evaluated as the project progresses , and once it ’ s done , a regular screening program could be rolled out across Alberta , depending on funding .
More information about the pilot is online at screeningforlife . ca / lung . masmith @ postmedia . com @ meksmith https :// link . springer . com / article / 10.1007 / s11356-022-21919-y