MCCG to Celebrate Lung Cancer Awareness Month

MCCG to Celebrate Lung Cancer Awareness Month

Series of Events to be Held in November  

MACON, GA (Wednesday, October 30, 2013) – Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death among both women and men in the U.S. and in Georgia. The American Cancer Society estimates 228,190 new cases will be diagnosed in 2013 and 159,480 people will die of the disease this year. Approximately 5,000 of those deaths will take the lives of Georgians, outnumbering deaths related to breast, prostate and colon cancer combined.

Awareness and early detection are keys to changing these statistics. The Medical Center of Central Georgia (MCCG) and the Cancer Life Center at MCCG have prepared a month long celebration to promote awareness and education during November, National Lung Cancer Awareness Month.

The following is a schedule of events:

• Monday, Nov. 4:
  • “Shine A Light On Lung Cancer” Vigil
    • 6:00 p.m.
    • Macon City Hall, 700 Poplar Street, Macon
• Thursday, Nov. 14:
  • “Radon 101”
    • 3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
    • North Macon Park, 815 North Macon Park Drive
    • Radon exposure is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S. but exposure can easily be reduced. This seminar will teach participants how to take action against radon.
    • Free home radon test kits for participants. Please RSVP to (478) 633-8537 by Tuesday, Nov. 12 to ensure enough test kits for all participants.
• Thursday, Nov. 21:
• Great American Smokeout
• Tobacco users are encouraged to quit for the day and make a plan to quit for good. Tobacco users can turn in their cigarettes and tobacco products at the following Macon locations for incentives:
• MCCG's All Spice Café, 777 Hemlock St., 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
• Heartworks at MCCG, 777 Hemlock St., 7:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
• The Family Health Center, 3780 Eisenhower Pkwy.,  9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
• The Macon Health Club, 389 First St., 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
• The Wellness Center, 3797 Northside Dr., 6:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.

In addition, the Cancer Life Center will provide 50 free CT scan lung screenings for the first 50 patients who contact the Cancer Life Center. To qualify, patients must be a current or former smoker between the ages of 50 and 74, and must smoke or have smoked two packs a day for 10 years or one pack a day for 20 years. For more information and to schedule a screening, call (478) 633-91111.