Smokers who want assistance to help them kick the habit are invited to a free counseling session with a “quit-smoking” adviser, Tuesday, Feb. 26, 5:30-7:30 p.m. at Vanderbilt Health One Hundred Oaks, first floor conference room. 
Participants will learn about the cancer risk related to tobacco use and the latest tests available to screen individuals for lung cancer.
The free seminar, sponsored by Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC), is designed to help individuals develop a strategy to end tobacco use.
Tennessee continues to have one of the highest smoking rates in the United States.
Barbara Forbes, M.S., APN, director of the Dayani Institute for Smoking Cessation and Prevention at the Vanderbilt Dayani Center for Health and Wellness, will provide tips on how to stop smoking.
In her role as a smoking cessation adviser, Forbes keeps a jar of thick, black tar on her desk to demonstrate what happens to a smoker’s lungs after years of smoking.
Pierre Massion, M.D., director of the Thoracic Program at VICC, will provide information about the latest tests available to check smokers and former smokers for lung cancer.
Massion, professor of Medicine and Cancer Biology, is leading the Nashville Lung Cancer Screening Trial, a clinical research project to determine which biomarkers may be effective for early diagnosis of lung cancer.
The research trial is open to Nashville-area smokers or ex-smokers between the ages of 55 and 74.
Individuals who enroll will be offered a series of screening tests and participants will be followed closely for several years.
Massion and his research team hope to develop a proven test to determine who is at greatest risk of developing lung cancer.
Lung cancer is typically diagnosed at a late stage and kills more people in the United States every year than breast, colon and prostate cancers combined. Smoking tobacco is one of the leading risk factors for development of lung cancer.
The smoking cessation and lung screening seminar begins with registration and refreshments at 5:30 p.m., followed by presentations and a Q-and-A session from 6-7:30 p.m.
To reserve a seat, call 322-5981 or visit www.vanderbiltcancerseminars.com.
