The American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative Podcast

On this ALCSI podcast, Dr. Mulshine talks about his work on the early detection of lung cancer, and in particular, his research on CT-derived emphysema. He also shares with us his thoughts on how to improve the lung cancer screening guidelines and his knowledge on e-cigarette use and lung cancer risk.  

Dr. James L. Mulshine, M.D., is Professor, Rush University where he has served as Associate Provost and Vice President for Research while also acting has head of the Rush Cancer Center for two years and as well as Dean of the Graduate College for six years. Prior to joining Rush in 2005, he was at the NCI for 25 years, where he was on the research faculty. Internationally recognized as an expert on lung cancer, his research concentrates on application of quantitative CT to enable efficient early lung cancer detection.  He has been awarded 12 patents and has over 350 publications. He is a charter member of the Quantitative Imaging Biomarker Consortium of the RSNA and serves as the co-chair of the Small Nodule Profile Group for Lung Cancer Screening. He also serves as a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee of the American Lung Association and has served as an Associate Director of the CTSA Institute of Translational Medicine funded by the NIH. Dr. Mulshine is on numerous editorial boards, as well as national and international scientific and foundation advisory boards, including serving as Vice Chairman and Scientific Director of the Prevent Cancer Foundation®. He has received numerous national and international recognition awards related to the impact of his research efforts on early cancer management most recently including the Aescylusus Award, Bonnie J. Addario Foundation in 2018.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Dr. Hiren Mehta talks about his research on lung cancer risk prediction models, lung cancer staging, and early diagnosis.  

Dr. Hiren Mehta is a practicing interventional pulmonologist at University of Florida and involved in the Thoracic Oncology Group. He has board certifications in Internal Medicine, Interventional Pulmonary, Pulmonary Medicine, and Critical Care. His clinical work mainly involves patients with suspected or diagnosed lung cancer. His research has focused mainly on lung cancer screening and early diagnosis, developing prediction models for lung cancer in small pulmonary nodules and on bronchoscopic intratumoral injection of chemotherapy for locoregional recurrence of lung cancer. His publications include original manuscripts on lung cancer diagnosis, staging and prediction models, local treatment with Intratumoral chemotherapy, as well as book chapters and review articles on lung cancer. During his time at the University of Florida, he has collaborated with several investigators. These collaborations have resulted in the development of an extensive repository of tissues from patients with lung cancer and have additional, relevant information. Currently, he is collaborating with National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) investigators to develop methodologies to precisely stage lung cancer. He is also collaborating with several investigators to use one Florida data repository to assess the penetration and appropriateness of lung cancer screening in the state of Florida.   

On this ALCSI podcast, Dr. Madhuri talks about her work as a thoracic surgeon and her focus on minimally invasive surgery. She also shares with us her work on racial and gender disparities within cancer care and thoracic oncology.  

Dr. Madhuri Rao is an Assistant Professor with the Division of General Thoracic and Foregut Surgery at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Rao was born and raised in Bangalore, India, where she also completed her medical school.  She did her basic surgical training with the NHS, UK where she obtained her MRCS (UK) and moved to the US in 2008 and completed her general surgery residency from SUNY Downstate in Brooklyn, NY and her cardiothoracic surgery fellowship at Mount Sinai. Dr. Rao’s clinical practice includes the breadth of general thoracic surgery, with an interest in minimally invasive and innovative approaches, including the use of newer techniques, such robotic surgery and alternate thoracoscopic approaches. In addition to her clinical responsibilities, Dr. Rao dedicates her time to work on disparities in cancer care. She is also very involved in the Women in Surgery Interest Groups and serves as the Faculty Advisor for the AWS chapter at the University of Minnesota Medical School. She is also active in the DEI council of the Department of Surgery.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Dr. Estelamari Rodriguez talks about her experience leading Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center's lung cancer screening program. Their lung cancer screening program serves a significant portion of racial minorities (particularly Hispanic patients), and she shares the strategies the program has implemented to educate community members, increase the lung cancer screening rate, and reduce attrition rates.  

Dr. Estelamari Rodriguez is Associate Director of Community Outreach and Co-Lead of the Thoracic Site Disease Group of the NCI-designated Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. She has a special interest in the early detection of lung cancer and supervises the lung cancer screening program at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. She is also an active member of of the Experimental Therapeutics Program.  

Dr. Rodriguez received her bachelors degree from Columbia College and her medical degree from State University of New York (SUNY) Downstate College of Medicine. She completed her internal medicine residency at Columbia University’s New York-Presbyterian Hospital and her medical oncology fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Rodriguez also has a master’s degree in Public Health from the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, Spain. She has given numerous lectures as invited speaker on issues related to lung cancer and healthcare disparities.   

On this ALCSI podcast, Dr. Wade Iams talks about his research on blood biomarkers and his experience leading several clinical trials and caring for patients with thoracic malignancies.  

Dr. Wade Iams is a thoracic medical oncologist and translational lung cancer researcher at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. His research focuses on lung cancer clinical trials, as well as discovering and validating novel blood biomarkers that can be used to better identify and monitor lung cancer patients.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Lauren Coye talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. 

Lauren is a 24-year-old who has never smoked and recently lost most of her right lung to cancer. Since her lobectomy in March she has been racing 5Ks and climbing mountains on the East and West coasts. She aims to end the stigma around lung cancer and spread the word that anyone with lungs can get lung cancer.

On this ALCSI podcast, Dr. Nestor Villamizar shares his expertise and research on lung cancer and lung cancer screening. Dr. Nestor Villamizar is an Associate Professor in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, and is the Program Director for the Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency. Dr. Villamizar did his residency in general surgery at Duke University Medical Center and completed his fellowship in cardiothoracic surgery at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He has a particular interest in lung-sparing complex robotic segmentectomy for lung cancer. He is the medical director of the lung cancer screening program at the University of Miami.

On this ALCSI podcast, Dr. Alain Tremblay shares his expertise and research on lung cancer and lung cancer screening.  

Dr. Tremblay is a Pulmonologist and Professor of Medicine at the University of Calgary in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He is the clinical lead for the Alberta Thoracic Oncology Program, a rapid access program for patients with suspected lung malignancies, and Medical lead for the new Alberta Lung Cancer Screening Program. He has been involved in lung cancer screening research for over 15 years and curates the twitter feed @lung_ca_screen.   

On this ALCSI podcast, Mrs. Gina Horan talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. Gina has lived unconventionally for a living. She wisely achieved a degree in Philosophy to complement her Fine Arts major. She has worked independently her entire life. She married a musician, and together they called the west coast "home," while they toured the majority of the US. She has a support dog named Pickle who has a support dog named Purple. In 2019 lung cancer came into her life shortly after turning 46. Like life, she approached this creatively and independently. She has lived cancer-free since 2020, having escaped death and hospice solely by using her mind… and immunotherapy. She and her husband (and caregiver) are joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share their story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Ms. Denise Lee talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. Denise is a 4.5-year lung cancer survivor. She is also an avid reader and loves to travel. She was born and raised in the Midwest, went to college on the east coast and attended law school on the west coast. If she had to pick a phrase that encapsulates her journey, she'd say "a billboard saved my life...literally!" She is joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share her story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Dr. Lary Robinson, a thoracic surgeon at the Moffitt Cancer Center, shares his expertise and research on lung cancer and lung cancer screening.  

Dr. Robinson, a native of Kansas, received his undergraduate B.A. degree in anthropology at the University of Kansas and his medical degree from the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. He completed his internship and residency in general and cardiothoracic surgery at the Duke University Medical Center. Additionally, he completed a fellowship in cardiac research and clinical cardiac surgery at the St. Thomas Hospital in London. He also served as a Flight Surgeon at the rank of Major, USAF in Thailand during the Vietnam War.  

A Diplomat of the American Board of Surgery, the American Board of Thoracic Surgery as well as certified in Surgical Critical Care, Dr. Robinson began his practice at the University of Nebraska Medical Center where he was an Associate Professor of Surgery and Pharmacology and the Clinical Director of the Clinical Perfusion Science Education Program. Dr. Robinson then came to the University of South Florida College of Medicine in Tampa in 1994 where he is currently a Professor of Surgery (Thoracic) and Interdisciplinary Oncology. He practices thoracic surgical oncology at the Moffitt Cancer Center as a Senior Member of the Moffitt Medical Group. He is also Director of the Pancoast Tumor Program in the Department of Thoracic Oncology. Recently he helped found the Center for Infection Research in Cancer (CIRC) in 2012. He is also the co-founder and President of Prelude to a Cure, Inc., a non-profit charity dedicated to raising funds to support lung cancer research.  

Dr. Robinson is the author or co-author of over 160 medical publications. He is directly involved as Principal Investigator in 2 ongoing clinical cancer research protocols involving lung cancer and the microbiome, as well as lung cancer in never-smoking women. He is also a Co-Principal Investigator for a prospective multi-center clinical study evaluating the influence of the gut microbiome on the effectiveness of immunotherapy for advanced lung cancer. Clinically, he is a member of the multidisciplinary thoracic oncology group involved in the evaluation and treatment of all stages of lung cancer, thymoma, and other thoracic cancers which includes aggressive, combined modality therapy including numerous clinical trials.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Mrs. Lisa Goldman talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. She was diagnosed with ROS1+ Stage IV NSCLC in 2014. She co-founded The ROS1ders, Inc. and currently serves as the Vice President and sits on their Board of Directors (see www.ros1ders.org). Lisa is also a member of the Pfizer Lung Cancer Steering Committee and a Patient Advocate for the Lung Cancer Foundation of America. She speaks at medical conferences both internationally and in the USA and blogs at Every Breath I Take. Lisa previously worked as a fitness instructor and lawyer. She is joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share her story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Mrs. Valerie Vanderford talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor. Valerie is a mom, grandma, wife, gardener, photographer, and 10.5-year lung cancer survivor. A nagging cough led to a myriad of tests and ultimately the diagnosis of Stage IIIB lung cancer in 2011. She had her right lung removed shortly afterward, and has been "NED" (no evidence of disease) ever since. She credits a positive attitude, along with some natural supplements, for her survival and preventing the recurrence of cancer. She is joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share her story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Mrs. Yovana Portillo talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. Yovana was a passenger in a car accident in the spring of 2016 that led to a visit to the ER, where a mass on her left lung was discovered during the examination. At 35, living a pretty active lifestyle and without any other major health ailments, Yovana was shocked when she heard her diagnosis of Stage IB Mucinous Adenocarcinoma Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer. Yovana is now a strong advocate for lung cancer, hoping to end the stigma associated with the disease, increase research funding, and raise awareness that lung cancer can happen to anyone, all you need is lungs. She is joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share her story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Mrs. Heidi Nafman-Onda talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate, and Dr. Pierre Onda talks about his experience as a caregiver for Heidi. Heidi and Pierre are high school sweethearts since 1979 and married 36 years. They are the co-founders of The White Ribbon Project, which aims to change the public perception of lung cancer with the message, “Anyone with lungs can get lung cancer and no one deserves it.” Heidi, a lifelong health enthusiast with no smoking history, was diagnosed with Stage IIIA cancer of the lung in October of 2018. Pierre is Heidi’s caregiver and a recently retired primary care physician. Lung cancer rocked their world and they are fighting back strong and encouraging the lung cancer community to unify, stand tall, and increase lung cancer awareness by becoming visible and vocal, humanizing this misunderstood disease. They are joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share their story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Ms. Diane Colton talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. Diane was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2011, 2012, and 2019. After her second diagnosis in 2012, she learned the reality of having lung cancer and began paying attention to the stigmas that cancer carries with it. Like most people diagnosed with one of the over 50 types of cancers of the lung, she knew nothing. The more she read, the stronger her desire to do something to hopefully be a pebble that would create an avalanche of change. Because she is in good health, she has the ability to do much more than the over 90% who continue to fight to live. Diane began her advocating in 2014, and, throughout her personal battle with cancer and surgery and treatments, she has continued with both her day job and her advocacy work. When her cancer returned in 2019 as a brain tumor, she underwent three stereotactic radiation treatments and, after recovery, went right back to work at both jobs. She is joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share her story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Mr. Edward Cutler talks about his journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. Mr. Cutler was diagnosed in 2013 with stage IV non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). He is a native of Tampa, Florida, and went to Pennsylvania for college and met his wife, Donna, there. After getting married and serving in the U.S. Navy in the Vietnam War, they moved back to Tampa. He worked as a certified public accountant and tax consultant for over 50 years until his retirement earlier this year. Mr. Cutler and his wife have two adult children and three grandchildren, all of whom live on opposite coasts of the USA.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Mrs. Donna Hunting talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. Donna is a non-smoker who was diagnosed with lung cancer at the age of 54. She has non-small cell lung cancer, adenocarcinoma with the EGFR Exon 19 mutation. Since diagnosis, she has been NED (no evidence of disease) two times in her journey and is currently on her third treatment line. She is joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share her story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Mrs. Katja Broddesson talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. Katja was diagnosed with stage IV non-small cell lung cancer adenocarcinoma and stage II non-Hodgkin's lymphoma as a 47-year-old non-smoker. Since then she had clean scans! She is joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share her story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Ms. Sarina Logan talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. Sarina was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in 2018 at the age of 41. Biomarker testing revealed that she was EGFR positive, which led her to the medication she’s on today—and into remission. She is joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share her story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Ms. Lisa Moran talks about her journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. In 2015, at the age of 44, Lisa was active, athletic, and otherwise healthy. In spite of having no known risk factors for the disease, she was diagnosed with terminal, incurable, metastatic, stage 4 lung cancer. She is joining us with the American Lung Cancer Screening Initiative to share her story.  

On this ALCSI podcast, Mr. Erik Hale talks about his journey as a lung cancer survivor and advocate. Erik, a non-smoker, was diagnosed in 2013 with stage IIIA lung cancer at the age of 30. In that year, he underwent radiation treatment, chemotherapy, and a lobectomy to remove half of his left lung. After one recurrence and another surgery in 2019, Erik is now healthy and thankful that he gets to spend his days with his family at their home in Broomfield, Colorado. Erik is a first-time author and hopes to get his first original novel, a noir thriller, published later this year.