Littauer is designated an ACR Lung Cancer Screening Center

Littauer is designated an ACR Lung Cancer Screening Center

New lung cancer screening at Littauer can save lives

– Nathan Littauer Hospital & Nursing Home has been designated a Lung Cancer Screening Center by the American College of Radiology (ACR).

The ACR Lung Cancer Screening Center designation is a voluntary program that recognizes facilities that have committed to practice safe, effective diagnostic care for individuals at the highest risk for lung cancer.

“It has been scientifically proven that early detection saves lives,” states Littauer’s Chief of Radiology, Dr. John Mastrangelo. “This low-dose lung screening has so much potential, and is a life-saving technology we are using here at Littauer.”

According to Dr. Mastrangelo, the benefits of the low-dose chest CT allows for earlier detection identifying questionable sites that are overlooked by x-rays. Earlier detection allows for better treatment options and a better chance of survival.

“It’s good to know we have an exceptionally skilled staff here at Littauer and we work well together as a team,” continues Dr. Mastrangelo. “Low-dose chest CT’s are saving lives on a daily basis and the scan takes about ten seconds.”

No one understands this better than Priscilla Person, Littauer’s diagnostic imaging office coordinator, who lost two close family members to lung cancer. Person has been a proponent of the low-dose lung screening and instrumental in advocating for this service, bringing its importance to the forefront at Littauer.

“They were exhibiting no symptoms,” said Person. “By the time they were screened, it was too late and they only survived for weeks after their diagnosis.”

In order to receive this elite distinction, facilities must be accredited by the ACR in computed tomography in the chest module, as well as undergo a rigorous assessment of its lung cancer screening protocol and infrastructure. Also required are procedures in place for follow-up patient care, such as counseling and smoking cessation programs.

Lung cancer screening with low-dose computed tomography scans, and appropriate follow-up care, significantly reduces lung cancer deaths. In December 2013, the United States Preventive Services Task Force recommended screening of adults aged 55 to 80 years who have a 30 pack-year smoking history and currently smoke or have quit within the past 15 years. Lung cancer is the nation’s leading cancer killer – taking the lives of more people each year than breast, colon and prostate cancers combined.

The ACR, founded in 1924, is one of the largest and most influential medical associations in the United States. The ACR devotes its resources to making imaging and radiation therapy safe, effective and accessible to those who need it. Its 36,000 members include radiologists, radiation oncologists, medical physicists, interventional radiologists and nuclear medicine physicians.

For more information about the Lung Cancer Screening Center designation, visit: acr.org/Quality-Safety/Lung-Cancer-Screening-Center. To find out if you’re a candidate for low-dose lung cancer screening, call Littauer Diagnostic Imaging at (518) 773-5520.

Priscilla Person, left, Littauer’s diagnostic imaging office coordinator and Donna Boswell, Littauer Senior CT Tech

Priscilla Person, left, Littauer’s diagnostic imaging office coordinator and Donna Boswell, Littauer Senior CT Tech

 

Littauer earns Nuclear Medicine ACR Accreditation

Littauer earns Nuclear Medicine ACR Accreditation

Littauer earns Nuclear Medicine ACR Accreditation

Nathan Littauer Hospital has been awarded a three-year term of accreditation in nuclear medicine as the result of a recent review by the American College of Radiology (ACR). Nuclear medicine is a branch of medical imaging that uses small amounts of radioactive material, ingested by the patient, to diagnose and treat a variety of disease, including many types of cancers, heart disease, and certain other abnormalities within the body.

The ACR gold seal of accreditation represents the highest level of image quality and patient safety. It is awarded only to facilities meeting ACR Practice Guidelines and Technical Standards after a peer-review evaluation by board-certified physicians and medical physicists who are experts in the field. Image quality, personnel qualifications, adequacy of facility equipment, quality control procedures, and quality assurance programs are assessed. The findings are reported to the ACR Committee on Accreditation, which subsequently provides the practice with a comprehensive report they can use for continuous practice improvement.

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The ACR is a national professional organization serving more than 36,000 diagnostic/interventional radiologists, radiation oncologists, nuclear medicine physicians, and medical physicists with programs focusing on the practice of medical imaging and radiation oncology and the delivery of comprehensive health care services.

 

In addition to nuclear medicine, Littauer is also ACR accredited in mammography, MRI, CT and ultrasound.

 

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Nathan Littauer Hospital and Family of Health Services serves Fulton, Montgomery, and Hamilton counties in upstate New York with a full-service, 74-bed acute care hospital, nine primary care centers, a nursing home and a community education center. The hospital was founded in 1894, has 1,000 employees and regularly hosts ground-breaking spine surgeries. Nathan Littauer continues to offer the latest in diagnostic imaging, including a new MRI suite. For more information, please visit www.nlh.org.