The American College of Radiology named the Pella Regional Health Center in Pella, Iowa, as a Lung Cancer Screening Center last month.

The designation means that the health center will be able to provide lung CT scans to check for cancer. Eligible, high-risk patients who are smokers or former smokers (especially between the ages of 55 and 80) will be able to receive free screenings once a year in an effort to detect lung cancer or lung cancer warning signs before symptoms arise. A statement by the health center pointed out that it is easier to treat and possibly cure lung cancer when it is detected before symptoms are apparent.

Radiologists reading the CT scans will look for nodules in the lungs or any other kind of abnormality that could become cancerous.

A radiologist at a Pella Regional Health Center likened the screenings to a colonoscopy or a mammogram, as an exam to help detect certain kinds of cancers early.

“For patients who qualify, there will be an exam each year. In order for it to work, you have to come every year for as long as your doctor recommends, so that any cancer that may be small and slow growing will be found as early as possible. If an abnormality is found, Pella Regional has a system in place to help the patient navigate next steps in treatment,” Allison Smith, DO, said in the center’s statement.

To become an ACR-designated Lung Cancer Screening Center, a clinic or hospital must have already been accredited for chest CT scans by the ACR and meet certain technological standards. Then they must fill out an application, provide lung cancer screening clinical data and submit an application fee of $400 per radiology unit.

According to Pella Regional Health Center, the institution is the only Lung Cancer Screening Center in the region.