TULSA, Okla. — A look at lung cancer screenings in Oklahoma show how much those screenings matter. Oklahoma has among the lowest lung-cancer screening rate in the nation. Doctors say that often means cancer isn’t found until it’s harder to treat.
A spot in the upper right corner of Gwyn Lessen’s right lung was cause for concern.
“I was extremely devastated,” said Gwyn Lesson. “I really was.”
It was only her third lung cancer screening ever. The first in September 2022 was fine. Her second in October 2023 was good. November 2024’s screening revealed a small nodule.
“I was extremely scared,” said Lessen. “I was very very scared.”
Lessen, a former smoker, was filled with fear but also gratefulness that the tiny lump was caught early. She had surgery at St. Francis this summer.
Dr. Hope Cordova removed the cancer and one third of her lung. Lessen didn’t need chemotherapy or radiation. She just gets follow up scans to monitor her health.
“It saved my life is what it did,” said Lessen. “I am cancer free.”
She says even though her sister died of lung cancer in 2001 she never thought to get scanned until she was hospitalized with COVID for three days.
At that point, she decided to take her health more seriously.
“It’s just part of a regiment on your annual doctor visits that you go to,” said Lessen. “It’s just something that you need to have looked at.”
Dr. Cordova, a cardiothoracic surgeon at St. Franics, treated Lessen.
“She really defines what we want success to look like in these situations,” said Dr. Cordova.
She says Oklahoma has one of the lowest screening rates in the country at about 10 percent and is among the worst in new cases at more than 63%.
She says early detection can produce better outcomes.
“Gwyn is the perfect example of how best this screening can be utilized,” said Dr. Cordova. “The hope is that when lung cancer is present that we can catch it in an early stage with a small nodule that can be resected before it develops and becomes a more aggressive disease.”
Now cancer free, Lessen is advocating for others to get screened.
“My whole life is changed since that time,” said Lessen.
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