Indiana University Nurse Researcher Lisa Carter-Harris Is Helping More Individuals Pursue Lung Cancer Screenings

Indiana University School of Nursing researcher and assistant professor Lisa Carter-Harris is developing a new framework to understand lung cancer screening participation from the perspective of the individual. She was rewarded a grant of $458,334 by the National Cancer Institute to conduct her research.

Armed with the knowledge that lung cancer kills more people the US than breast, colorectal, pancreatic, and prostate cancers combined, Carter-Harris is seeking to better understand lung cancer screenings. Most lung cancer fatalities occur because patients are diagnosed at an advanced stage which results in limited treatment options and a 1-5 percent five-year survival rate.

90 percent of all lung cancers in the US have been linked to cigarette smoking, but this high-risk group is the most reluctant to participate in screening due to perceived stigma, medical mistrust, and cancer fatalism. Smokers often experience stigma surrounding their addiction to nicotine and feel blamed for perceived self-infliction of tobacco-related diseases.

Carter-Harris’s research will be the first mixed-methods study to examine lung cancer screening behavior from the perspective of the person making the decision to screen. Carter-Harris tells News.IU.edu:

“This new study will provide critical insights into the variables that affect individual decision-making regarding lung cancer screening and will inform how we tailor intervention strategies in this area…We’re highlighting the patient voice in order to understand the survey findings more completely, which is critical in moving the science forward in improving both implementation as well as patient outcomes in lung cancer screening.”

To learn more about Carter-Harris’s research on lung cancer screening participation, visit here.