{"id":242,"date":"2016-04-13T20:44:57","date_gmt":"2016-04-13T20:44:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rayusradiology.com\/?p=242"},"modified":"2021-08-12T06:05:33","modified_gmt":"2021-08-12T11:05:33","slug":"how-to-convince-a-smoker-you-love-to-get-a-ct-lung-cancer-screening","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rayusradiology.com\/blog\/how-to-convince-a-smoker-you-love-to-get-a-ct-lung-cancer-screening\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Convince a Smoker You Love to Get a CT Lung Cancer Screening"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"\"RachelIf you\u2019ve never smoked, it\u2019s hard to imagine what it\u2019s like to quit. Maybe even harder to imagine what it\u2019s like to continue to smoke, year after year, knowing you\u2019re increasing your odds for lung cancer. Rachel Carlson watched this smoking cycle play out in her own family. Her mother smoked for decades, feeling guilty the whole time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think people who have lung cancer are afraid to admit that their smoking may have caused their cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rachel\u2019s mom had finally convinced herself to find help to stop smoking \u2013 had even enrolled in a cessation program \u2013 when a diagnosis changed her life. Lung cancer. The two words from the oncologist sounded like a death sentence. Years of begging her mother to quit had come to this.<\/p>\n

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Get Over the Stigma<\/h3>\n
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It\u2019s not unusual for smokers to feel ashamed, says Nancy Torrison of A Breath of Hope Lung Foundation<\/a>. Every day she works with lung cancer patients and their families, who know the stigma of smoking all too well.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople make all kinds of personal choices that are not healthy. We\u2019ve got obesity problems and we\u2019ve got inactivity and we\u2019ve got so many personal choices that aren\u2019t healthy, but we really, really blame lung cancer patients and sometimes make them feel like they brought it on themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

So with that shame, the stigma attached, and the sense of personal responsibility \u2013 convincing someone you love to take action can seem impossible. But being persuasive can be lifesaving. That\u2019s because there\u2019s a simple scan that can capture images of your lungs and help diagnose lung cancer earlier. It\u2019s called a low-dose CT lung cancer screening<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Explain the Test<\/h3>\n
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Talking a smoker into getting the test may not be easy. Start by explaining how it works. CAT scans have been around for a long time, but CT lung cancer screening was recently endorsed for screening smoking patients for early detection of lung cancers, explains Dr. James Sullivan<\/a>, a radiologist at RAYUS Radiology. Here\u2019s how the test works:<\/p>\n