SSM St. Joseph participates in lung cancer study

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http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/ ... st=b_ln_hl

SSM St. Joseph Health Center announced Friday it is the only facility in Missouri to participate in an early lung cancer detection study.

St. Joseph Health Center in St. Charles is participating in the International-Early Lung Cancer Action Program (I-ELCAP). The study, which is not funded by any grants, offers at-risk individuals, over the age of 40, the opportunity to be scanned by computed/tomography (CT). The CT screening will better detect lung cancer in its earliest stages, when the tumors can be smaller than a grain of rice.

The study costs $300 out-of-pocket and is not covered by insurance. Typical CT scans cost between $1,300 and $1,500, according to Ellen Brennan, a nurse clinician and the study coordinator. The hospital is currently seeking grants to help cover the additional costs it is incurring.

St. Louis-based SSM Health Care (SSMHC), a health-care ministry founded in 1872, is one of the largest Catholic systems in the nation. It is also one of the largest health-care providers in Missouri. SSMHC owns, operates and manages 20 acute care hospitals, including SSM St. Joseph Health Center.