Congratulations to our third cohort of 2022, who finished their training on the Lung Cancer Screening Platform! The following LCS staff members have graduated from the program:
- Amy Franklin – Salisbury, NC
- Ann Schloss – Los Angeles, CA
- Annette Watts – West Palm Beach, FL
- Carrie Pineda – Washington, DC
- Christina M. Anderson – El Paso, TX
- Christopher Dion – Augusta, ME
- Christopher Sanchez – West Palm Beach, FL
- Dawn J. Credle – Columbia, SC
- Devika Das – Birmingham, AL
- Diego A. Ponieman – El Paso, TX
- Francisco Torres Cruz – Orlando, FL
- Gloribel Rodriguez Borrero – Pittsburgh, PA
- Hester S. Ganoung – Syracuse, NY
- Ian G. Haycocks – El Paso, TX
- James R. Paz – West Haven, CT
- Jennifer N. Pendleton – Gainesville, FL
- John C. Stachl – El Paso, TX
- Karen E. Speed – Memphis, TN
- Kourtney S. Napper – Gainesville, FL
- Lawrence F. Aleshire – Columbus, OH
- Leah Toney – Marion, IL
- Leslie M. Smith – Charleston, SC
- Louis M. Lit – West Palm Beach, FL
- Lynn K. Simpson – Washington, DC
- Mohammad Talpur – Milwaukie, WI
- Nicole L. Burnham – Chicago, IL
- Niurka Pino Rodriguez – Orlando, FL
- Peter A. Seirafi – West Palm Beach, FL
- Quentaxia Z. Wrighting – Houston, TX
- Teleska Jeffcoat – Gainesville, FL
- Teri A. Pagano – Orlando, FL
- Virginia Turner – Columbia, SC
- Zenaida Acevedo – Orlando, FL
Please join us on December 19, 2022, from 3:00-4:00 PM EST for “Lung Cancer Screening and Smoking Cessation: Combining Care to Improve Health.” This live, virtual presentation will review the new guidelines and supporting evidence for lung cancer screening with low-dose CT and discuss current knowledge, as well as knowledge gaps, surrounding the integration of tobacco dependence treatment into lung cancer screening care processes.
This educational activity will increase knowledge of both care processes, tobacco treatment and lung cancer screening, and suggest evidence-based strategies that can be employed to improve this care for Veterans. This educational activity will also suggest collaboration between key stakeholders in tobacco control, lung cancer screening, and primary care, as successful integration of these care processes is dependent upon a team approach. This training is appropriate for interprofessional health care teams.
Presenter: Dr. Anne Melzer, Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, University of Minnesota
Direct VA TMS Registration Link: Lung Cancer Screening and Smoking Cessation: Combining Care to Improve Health.
In honor of National Lung Cancer Awareness Month, President Joe Biden called on the private sector to continue searching for new potential treatments and lung cancer cures, promoting smoking cessation, and advocating for lower drug prices. The Biden Administration recommends that anyone over the age of 50, who has smoked a pack of cigarettes a day or more, for several years, should schedule an annual lung cancer screening. The President encourages citizens to consult with their doctors and health care providers to learn more about actions they can take to prevent, detect, and treat lung cancer. For more information and resources from President Biden’s proclamation, you can find his statement here.
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On Saturday, November 12, 2022, VA opened screening centers across the country to celebrate Lung Cancer Screening Day. We would like to extend our gratitude to all the sites that participated, but especially to the following people for their involvement and dedication to increasing accessibility to life-saving screening:
- Donna O’Meara, RN, BSN, MA
- Ivana Adler, RN
- Jun-Chief Tsay, MD
- Ken Granholm, RN
- Mohammad Al-Ajam, MD
- Pooja Belligund, MD
- Ravi Rampariag, FNP
- Richelle Coraza, RN
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John M. Mathis, MD, MSc (Radiologic Physics) is fellowship-trained in interventional body and neuroradiology, medical imaging, and nuclear medicine.
Dr. Mathis is currently Director of Lung Cancer Screening for the VA’s National Radiology Program Office. He is also the director of the VISN 10 Diagnostic ICC and Professor of Radiological Sciences at Wright State Medical School.
Previously, he was Director of Neuroradiology at University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions and introduced Percutaneous Vertebroplasty at both institutions. His primary research focus has been in the realm of image-guided, minimally invasive spine pain management.
Dr. Mathis was President of the American Society of Spine Radiology (ASSR) from 2001-2002 and served on the executive committees of the ASSR, American Society of Neuroradiology (ASNR) and American Society of Interventional and Therapeutic Neuroradiology (ASITN). He received the ASSR Gold Medal in 2020 for scientific contributions to diagnosis and treatment of spine disease.
He has served as a consultant to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the division of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation for injectable biomaterials.
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