Chicago Firefighters Get Lung Cancer Screening Access

Adults over 21 who fall outside current federal screening criteria can now request a free consultation at Northwestern's Lung Health Center.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Cancer

Photograph of a red fire engine parked inside a brick apparatus bay with turnout gear hanging nearby under soft overcast daylight. — Northwestern Medicine will screen more than 300 Chicago and DeKalb firefighters for lung cancer in November, including those who fall outside federal screening criteria. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

Live Poll

Would you get a low-dose CT lung cancer screening if eligible?

Northwestern Medicine will screen more than 300 firefighters from Chicago and DeKalb, Illinois for lung cancer during Lung Cancer Awareness Month in November 2026. The effort reflects the Lung Health Center's model of screening participants regardless of whether they meet traditional CT screening criteria.

Why it matters

Only 35% of patients treated for lung cancer would have qualified for screening under current USPSTF guidelines, and nearly two-thirds of those who would not have qualified were women or people who had never smoked. Firefighters face occupational exposures to smoke, diesel exhaust, asbestos, benzene, and silica that can increase lung cancer risk, and lung cancer often develops silently.

The Lung Health Center screened nearly 1,000 participants in its first year, with an average age of 56 and 54% showing lung nodules or other findings warranting ongoing surveillance. Six patients were diagnosed with early-stage cancers and successfully treated, and researchers estimate an age-based approach could detect 94% of lung cancers.

The players

Northwestern Medicine

A major Chicago-area health system whose Lung Health Center is running the firefighter and research screening effort.

Canning Thoracic Institute

The Northwestern Medicine site that houses the Lung Health Center's screening program.

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force

The federal panel whose USPSTF guidelines set the current criteria for who qualifies for lung cancer screening.

The details

The Lung Health Center screens participants regardless of whether they meet traditional CT screening criteria, which is how it reaches people the current guidelines would miss. Forty percent of participants had a smoking history but did not meet USPSTF criteria, and two patients with stage 1 lung cancer had never smoked. Anyone over 21 can request a free consultation that begins with a phone call.

November 2025: Northwestern Medicine launched the Lung Health Center.
November 2026: The firefighter screening initiative takes place during Lung Cancer Awareness Month.
Over five years: The research project aims to screen 10,000 individuals.
2027: An Illinois prohibition on selling PFAS-containing gear to fire departments takes effect.

Health Landscape

Current USPSTF guidelines tie lung cancer screening eligibility to smoking history and age, and the Lung Health Center's data suggest that framework misses a substantial share of cancers. Researchers estimate an age-based screening approach could prevent more than 26,000 additional deaths annually across the United States.

If you are over 21 and have concerns about lung cancer risk, the Lung Health Center offers a free consultation that begins with a phone call, and it is worth discussing with your doctor whether screening is appropriate for you. Firefighters and others with occupational exposures to smoke, diesel, asbestos, or silica should raise their risk history with a clinician, since lung cancer often has no early symptoms.

The takeaway

Lung cancer screening eligibility is broader than current guidelines suggest for many people, including women and never-smokers. Talk with your physician about your personal risk history, including any occupational exposures.

What happens next

The firefighter screening initiative is scheduled to take place during Lung Cancer Awareness Month in November 2026, and the five-year research project aims to screen 10,000 individuals.