INDIANAPOLIS — IU Health is hitting the road to help save lives against the deadliest form of cancer. Its Mobile Lung Screening Unit has been up and running for almost two months, and it's already reached hundreds of Hoosiers statewide. This week, it stopped in Indy to screen firefighters for free.
It’s a simple scan, but it doesn’t happen in the hospital; instead, it's on wheels.
IU teamed up with the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center to launch the state’s first-ever mobile lung cancer screening unit.
The scans take place in a 40-foot truck with a CT scanner that can travel across the state.
“It’s more convenient for people,” said Richard Craig, a former long-time firefighter in Indianapolis. “I started in the day when we didn't even wear an air pack, and I went through that whole phase since 1979.”
Craig got scanned outside the Indianapolis Firefighters Museum and Fallen Firefighters Memorial on Friday.
He now joins nearly 200 Hoosiers who’ve already taken advantage of the mobile screening unit that got rolling early this year.
“As a firefighter, you’re exposed to a lot of toxins, and it’s very important to monitor your health even after you retire,” former firefighter Ian Marano told WRTV.
He traveled from Chicago to get tested for free on the mobile unit.
It’s a disease that doesn’t just impact first responders. Lung Cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Indiana and the U.S.
According to the American Lung Association, Indiana has the ninth highest smoking rate in the country, above the national average, and IU Health reports that only 5% of Hoosiers at high risk get screened.
“Typically, lung cancer does not show signs or symptoms until it's in the very late stages, where curative treatment may not be an option. Lung scans can detect the smallest modules,” said the unit’s program manager, Amy Sams.
The scan takes less than two minutes but can make all the difference.
“Early detection saves lives,” Sams added.
IU Health’s Mobile Lung Screening Unit will hit the road all year long and will make various stops throughout the state.
You can find a list of the schedule, along with more information about lung cancer here.
