Lung Cancer Screenings: Meet the Nurse Who Is Making Them Happen

Mercy Health – Springfield Regional Medical Center would like to welcome Angela Wagner, RN and lung cancer care coordinator. She is very passionate about providing help and assistance to patients in the community, both inside and outside the walls of our hospital.

“As the lung care coordinator, I advocate for lung cancer screenings to help detect lung cancer early,” Angela says. “I am here for patients and their families as they navigate treatment and care.”

Lung cancer is the number one cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. If it’s caught early, it can typically be treated and patients can live a normal life. A lung cancer screening can be used to detect lung cancer early in people who do not have any symptoms.

Angela believes that educating our communities about the importance of lung screenings will make a big difference.

“Helping to detect our patient’s cancer early enough to make a difference in their outcome is part of why I come to work every day,” she says.

Angela is dedicated to our patients and is looking forward to continuing to help make a difference in the community.

Patients who fall under these categories are recommended to have an annual lung cancer screening:

• People who have a history of smoking (smoking history of one pack a day for 30 years or more or two packs a day for 15 years)
• People who currently smoke or who have quit within the last 15 years
• People who are between 55 and 80 years old and are current or former smokers
• Anyone with a history of lung cancer that has been in remission for more than five years
• Or anyone in a high-risk category for developing lung cancer (these are people who have a family history of lung cancer and people who have been exposed to asbestos)

Contact your primary care provider today if you have any questions about scheduling a lung cancer screening. Don’t have one? Find a Mercy Health provider near you.