Surviving Lung Cancer: Kathy’ s Story
When Kathy Trent learned she had emphysema in 2014, she immediately quit her pack-a-day smoking habit. In June 2019, a CT showed a nodule deep in the upper left lobe of Kathy’ s lungs. Although a PET scan determined it was noncancerous, the team at UPMC Passavant continued monitoring the suspicious mass with more frequent follow-up CT scans. Just a few months later, a scan showed the nodule had suddenly doubled in size.
Kathy was one of the first patients to benefit from the hospital’ s robotic bronchoscopy platform. Unfortunately, the biopsy showed Kathy had stage I lung cancer. The multidisciplinary team developed a plan for Kathy’ s treatment.
“ This technology and the wonderful doctors at UPMC Passavant saved my life,” says Kathy.“ They caught my lung cancer early before I felt any symptoms.”
to diagnose lung cancer at an earlier stage and increases the likelihood of a long-term cure.”
Treatment Options
Treatment for lung cancer may vary depending on how advanced the cancer is. For early-stage lung cancer, surgical treatment is typically recommended. For more advanced stages of lung cancer, patients may need a nonsurgical method of treatment.
1,260 lung cancer resection procedures, making UPMC the highest volume lung cancer surgery program in the region and among the top two highest volume programs in the nation.
Contact Us To learn more or to schedule an appointment, call 412-647-LUNG.
Why Choose UPMC?
UPMC recently received top ratings from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons( STS) for resection for primary lung cancer. During the reporting period, UPMC performed