Lung Center of Excellence

Saint Mary’s has been designated a Lung Cancer Screening Center by the American College of Radiology (ACR). The ACR Lung Cancer Screening Center designation is a voluntary program that recognizes facilities that have committed to practice safe and effective diagnostic care for individuals at the highest risk for lung cancer. In order to receive this elite distinction, facilities must be accredited by the ACR after undergoing a rigorous assessment of its lung cancer screening protocol and infrastructure. This includes appropriate patient follow-up care such as counseling and smoking cessation.

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CT Lung Screening

Recent guidelines from the American Society of Clinical Oncologists suggests annual screening with low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) for smokers and former smokers at high risk for developing lung cancer. High risk factors include being between the age of 55 to 74, having smoked for 30 years or more, and either continuing to smoke or having quit within the past 15 years. At this time, yearly screening with LDCT is recommended for high-risk individuals after careful discussion with their physicians. – Information courtesy ofwww.lungcancer.org. For more information about our CT Lung Screening, please call 775-770-3806.

Endobrachial Ultrasound (EBUS)

In the past, staging lung cancer often involved surgery. Today, thanks to advances in technology, lung diseases can be diagnosed and staged during an outpatient procedure called Endobrachial Ultrasound (EBUS) bronchoscopy — an advanced procedure now available to patients at Saint Mary’s Center for Cancer. EBUS gives patients access to an advanced technology proven to be superior to more invasive treatments. Experts report that EBUS eliminates the need for this surgical procedure and hospital stay when it comes to staging lung cancer. EBUS also improves the accuracy of diagnosis and limits patient risk.

SuperDimension: Electromagnetic Navigation Bronchoscopy (ENB)

We now offer a new procedure called Electromagnetic Navigation Bronchoscopy (ENB) which offers patients a minimally-invasive option to locate, enable biopsy and plan treatment for a lesion detected deep in the lung.

Saint Mary’s Center for Cancer is one of the first in Nevada to provide the superDimension® System as an option for patients who have learned they have a hard-to-reach lesion on their lungs. Two-thirds of all lung lesions are outside the reach of a bronchoscope, so the ENB procedure combines GPS-like technology with a catheter-based system that uses the patient’s natural airways to access lesions that were previously hard to reach. Typically a patient with a lesion on their lung had the options of major surgery to remove a section of the lung, bronchoscopy (which does not reach lesions deep in the lung), needle biopsy, or watchful waiting. The ENB procedure takes less than an hour to complete and is typically performed in an outpatient setting. Its unique approach may increase the chances that a patient will safely get a diagnosis and begin treatment if needed.