Page 20 THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, March 22, 2024 avvya yavvy eniiooravvy S iorn or v y Dear Just Turned, Even if you haven’t touched a cigarette in decades, you could still be due for an annual lung cancer screening, based on new recommendations from the American Cancer Society (ACS). The new guidelines state that adults ages 50 to 80 who currently smoke or used to smoke the equivalent of one pack a day for 20 years should get an annual low-dose computed tomography scan (also called a CT scan), no matter how long ago you quit. ACS guidelines previously said that those who quit 15 or more years ago were in the clear. But new studies have shown that expanding screening eligibility saves lives, even among people who quit smoking years earlier. Early Detection Saves Lives Lung cancer is the deadliest cancer in the United States. According to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 234,580 new cases are expected to be diagnosed in 2024, and about 125,070 Americans will die from the disease. While lung cancer can occur in anyone at any age, cigarette smoking is the top risk factor and is linked to about 80 to 90 percent of lung cancer deaths, and most people diagnosed with the disease are age 65 or older. What makes lung cancer especially tricky is that it’s often symptomless until it’s at an advanced stage, when it’s harder to treat. Early detection can lead to a 20 to 25 percent improvement in survival rates, resulting in fewer deaths from lung cancer. But a 2022 report from the American Lung Association found that only 5.8 percent of people eligible for lung cancer screening in the U.S. get screened, and the screening rate is as low as 1 percent in some states. Screening & Coverage If you fall into the population eligible for a lung cancer screening, start by speaking with your doctor, even if it’s been a long time since you smoked. Medicare Part B will cover lung cancer screenings with a lowdose CT scan once a year for people ages 50 to 77 who are current smokers or quit in the last 15 years and have a 20-pack-year history. Patients must have an order from their doctor or health care provider and should not have symptoms of lung cancer. A low-dose CT scan is a noninvasive test where you lie down and hold your breath while being moved through a doughnut-shaped X-ray machine. The scan takes several X-ray images of the lungs and can help to identify possible abnormalities in the lung tissue. There are some potential risks with this screening, including the possibility of false positives, which can lead to more scans or invasive procedures. According to the American Lung Association about 12 to 14 percent of lung cancer screening scans will have a false positive, which is about the same rate as with mammograms. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. io iori by Jim Miller Who Should Be Screened for Lung Cancer? Dear Savvy Senior, Who should be screened for lung cancer and how it’s covered by Medicare? I used to smoke but quit many years ago and am wondering if I need to be tested. Just Turned 65 T Malden City Council seeks resident for Community Preservation Committee he Malden City Council is seeking one resident from either Ward 1, Ward 2, Ward 3 or Ward 4 interested in serving on the Community Preservation Committee. This committee advances smart growth, sustainable development, preservation of open space, historic sites, afMUSINGS | FROM PAGE 6 very large brain endeared him to generations of M.H.S. students, Maldonians and faculty members at Malden High (inspiring the name of this column). Here are 10 more witticisms from his iconic “Musings” column: • “Some pump oil, some pump gas, some pump iron to impress a lass.” • “My friends call me candle because I am burnt out.” • “When she met Mr. Right, she left.” • “A square is someone who thinks ‘Fear of Flying’ is a biography of Jackie Jensen.” • “Whenever I see my shadow, I am beside myself.” • “Does John Wayne live in a Hondominium?” • “An insecticide salesman in Bangor is a herbicidal maniac.” • “If age brings wisdom, why is ‘old-fashioned’ an insult.” • “Queen Elizabeth doesn’t need karate. She can handle her dukes.” • “Erin, go ban the bragh.” As Peter Falk’s iconic TV character Columbo would say, “Just one more thing, sir” – the Blizzard of ’78 as remembered by a young Jeff Carroll – the cute little redheaded cherub who would later go on to run “The Connah” like a good-natured mob boss: “It has snowed for two days in a row. All day. All night. When it stops, the whole neighborhood - all of Whitman Street - start digging out. The elderly were dug out fi rst. The snowbanks on Highland Ave were left 10 feet high on both sides. No cars, of course, they were all EDUCATION | FROM PAGE 10 education and childcare quality, aff ordability and access include: • Creating a Data Advisory Commission to work with EEC on expanded data collection and reporting, and the improved use of data to inform the cost and quality of care • Directing EEC and the Executive Offi ce of Labor and Workforce Development to study and report on ways that employers could provide more childcare support to their employees, including the feasibility of assessfordable housing and development of outdoor recreational facilities within Malden, all in accordance with the rules and ordinances. The selected individual will be expected to possess interpersonal skill to allow him/her to work cooperatively with safely parked in the Immaculate schoolyard. “Me, my brother Greg, Al Fucci, Prisco and Libby Mancaniello, and Jeff Butt start a game of touch football right in the middle of Highland Ave! No cars in sight for miles. “After a while, food starts running low in the neighborhood and becomes a major necessity. Mrs. Fucci, Alan, and I go to Star Market down Highland Ave. Me and Alan had red plastic boat sleds. We went around Whitman before we left asking who needed what. We get to Star early that morning. I had a small list for my mom and the neighborhood; ten gallons of milk, ten loaves of bread, and ten dozen eggs. While Mrs. Fucci was doing her shopping, me and Alan played ‘King of the Hill’ on a 30foot snow pile in the parking lot. “While we were playing, Donald and Will Chaney, who lived upstairs from Gobeo’s paper shop on Highland Ave, came walking by. Of course, we let them play, but within 5 minutes Donny and Alan are throwing roundhouse at each other - for real! Me and Willy just slide down the hill and watch. Alan nails him a couple of punches and Donny falls backward down the pile. Out for the count as Alan starts yelling, ‘King of the Hill!’ Me and Willy start telling Donny, ‘Just stay down,’ as Donny’s lip bleeds out on the snowbank. “Mrs. Fucci is done shopping and signals she is ready for the trek home. We race over with our sleds and load up the groceries then start hiking back home. We get to Whitman where we start ing employers to help fund expanded access to high-quality, aff ordable early education and childcare • Requiring EEC to create a plan to pilot and scale shared service models that can improve the effi cient delivery of high-quality care • Requiring EEC to report to the legislature on ways to expand successful local partnerships, such as the Commonwealth Preschool Partnership Initiative (CPPI) • Requiring EEC and the Children’s Investment Fund to reboth fellow committee members and elected offi cials. Interested residents are required to send a cover letter together with a resume to City Council President Stephen Winslow by no later than Wednesday April 10, 2024 – swinslow@cityofmalden.org. delivering the goods to hungry neighbors. Happy to have food again, they tip us generously. We pocket ten dollars apiece and have a memory that is still with us today. It was an awesome day which I couldn’t forget if I tried! “Days go by, the older kids from the corner - Mickey O’Brien’s gang - build a snow house right next to JT’s Liquors (later Pumpsie’s). It had three openings and was the best snow fort I ever saw (outside of a real igloo). One night they had a small steel barrel inside and had a roaring fi re going and the coldest beer in the city. “The next day my crew as well as Kevin Hannon, Johnny Fields, and a bunch of the other older corner kids built an eight-foot round snowball which 15-20 [of] us rolled it in front of Nick’s ‘Big A’ front door. When Nick opened it the next morning, the mammoth snowball was sitting right where we left it. We told Nick we would call the DPW who came down with a backhoe and made quick work of it. Nick duked us free subs, never knew we were behind the mysterious and intrusive mound of snow.” Jeff , as Bob Hope once sang, “Thanks for the Memory.” Postscript: Just because. Malden Police Commissioner Salvatore “Butch” Gennetti, Malden loves you. Just because. —Peter is a longtime Malden resident and a regular contributor to the Malden Advocate. He can be reached at PeteL39@aol.com for comments, compliments or criticisms. port to the legislature on ways to improve and expand the impact of the Early Education and Out of School Time Capital Fund for making improvements to early education facilities The EARLY ED Act is based on the recommendations made by the Special Legislative Early Education and Care Economic Review Commission, which was chaired by Senator Lewis along with Representative Alice Peisch. The bill now heads to the Massachusetts House of Representatives for consideration.
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