The LUNGevity Early Lung Cancer Center (ELCC) uses research, policy, partnerships, and education to increase early detection rates so people diagnosed with lung cancer have the best chance at long-term survival. Currently only 20% of people are diagnosed in stage I or II, when the disease is most treatable. Routinely diagnosing lung cancer in its earliest stages should be the norm, not the exception.
The ELCC builds on existing expertise and programs at LUNGevity while pursuing new opportunities and partnerships that have the potential to expand our impact.
These include:
- driving up lung cancer screening rates,
- instituting and standardizing incidental nodule programs,
- paving the way for new blood-based detection, and
- ensuring that all people diagnosed with lung cancer have access to comprehensive biomarker testing to determine eligibility for treatment options and clinical trials.
Together with our partners, we will identify those areas where we can have the biggest impact to move the needle in early lung cancer.
LUNGevity's Work in Early Detection and Treatment
LUNGevity Foundation has been investing in early lung cancer research since 2009, and that research is yielding results – most recently with the creation of a Pre-Cancer Genome Atlas to understand the genesis of lung cancer at its earliest stages. LUNGevity has also been partnering with the US FDA and international regulatory agencies on efficient clinical trial design and conduct in the early-stage disease setting.
These efforts are complemented by research studies on early-stage patient attitudes toward risks and benefits of treatments through our Patient-Focused Research Center, Patient FoRCe. Along with research and regulatory efforts, LUNGevity continues to advocate for access to lifesaving technologies and therapies through our comprehensive policy initiatives and increasing awareness on and engagement in early detection and early disease management through our patient and provider awareness and education initiatives.
LUNGevity’s Early Lung Cancer Center (ELCC) will coordinate these activities across the Foundation and the lung cancer ecosystem to ensure that advances in technology and therapeutics are accessible to people who need it, when they need it.