Know Your Risk

Anyone with lungs can get lung cancer

Lung cancer doesn’t discriminate. It can happen no matter your gender or ethnic background. Lung cancer doesn’t care whether you’re rich, poor, urban, or rural. While smoking is the most common cause, environmental and even genetic risk factors can cause lung cancer in those who have never smoked.

Changing the course of lung cancer in Indiana starts with one easy step: Know your risk. If you have a personal or family history related to any known risk factors, take the time to discuss screening options with your healthcare provider:

We're redefining what lung cancer prevention looks like beyond stigma.

Launching in 2026, the McHenry, Sherman, Trimble End Lung Cancer Now Academy is a new initiative dedicated to developing emerging leaders in lung cancer prevention. Students, faculty, and community advocates are invited to help shape its direction and curriculum now, as well as receive updates and future enrollment information.

Interested in sharing ideas or staying connected?

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Tobacco use remains the #1 cause of lung cancer

Tobacco use contributes to about 80% of lung cancer deaths. People who smoke are 15-30 times more likely to develop or die from lung cancer than those who have never smoked. Breathing secondhand smoke is also dangerous and is the third-most common cause of lung cancer in the United States.

Quitting tobacco is challenging because nicotine is highly addictive, but there is real hope. Counseling, medication, and tobacco treatment programs like Quit Now Indiana can make quitting easier. Additionally, advocates across the globe are working to build nicotine-free communities and project current and future generations.

Beating tobacco isn’t just an individual effort. It’s a shared commitment to healthier lives and a healthier future.

It’s never too late to quit using tobacco

Did you know that quitting smoking at diagnosis or before starting cancer treatment can increase the lung cancer survival rate by 45%? Learn about research-backed quitting strategies and see how IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center is helping Hoosiers rethink tobacco.

Screening Saves Lives

Lung cancer screening is fast, easy, and safe. All it takes is a three-minute scan to check for lesions or nodules that might indicate cancer.

Lung Cancer in Indiana

The statistics are sobering, and the stakes are high, but together we can change the outcomes.

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Are you at risk from radon?

You can’t see it, smell it, or taste it, but it could be in your home

Radon is an invisible, odorless gas that seeps up from the ground. It accumulates indoors, especially during colder months when windows stay closed.

Radon exposure is the leading cause of lung cancer among those who have never   cigarettes, and Indiana homes are at higher risk than many realize. In fact, nearly 1 in 3 homes in the state have radon levels above the EPA s recommended safety threshold and all 92 counties are at either high risk or medium risk for elevated levels Refer to the map for the county-by-county breakdown.

Testing your home is simple and affordable, and mitigation systems can drastically reduce exposure.

Understand Radon and How to Stay Safe

Your family history matters

If a parent, sibling, or child has had lung cancer, your risk is 50% higher than that of someone without a family history. Genetic testing can identify changes that increase risk. While you can’t change your genes, you can use results to guide healthy choices.

Indiana Familial Cancer Clinic at the IU School of Medicine

Meet the Arnold family

In 2019, after two years of recurring symptoms, a chest X-ray showed that Andre’s wife Alesha had stage IV non-small cell lung cancer with an EGFR mutation.

The diagnosis was shocking — Alesha was just 44, a breast cancer research nurse, a non-smoker, and the mother of two young daughters. Advanced genetic testing revealed she was eligible for targeted therapy, which gave her three and a half additional years with her family.

Occupational and environmental risks

Factors beyond your control can raise lung cancer risk. Occupational and environmental exposures, along with limited access to care, can play a role in who develops lung cancer and when it’s detected. Researchers call these “social determinants of health.”

You might be at a higher risk of lung cancer if you’re exposed to:

  • Asbestos: This now-banned insulation material was used in older homes, ships, and buildings. Exposure to asbestos remains a  risk for veterans, firefighters, and people working in construction, mining, or industrial trades.
  • Air pollution: Airborne toxins are linked to about 1%-2% of lung cancer deaths in both urban and rural communities.
  • Other harmful chemicals: Breathing in diesel exhaust, radioactive materials, and industrial chemicals can also cause lung cancer.
  • Firefighters and veterans: Firefighters face repeated exposure to smoke, toxic combustion products, and contaminated gear. Veterans are at a 25% increase in lung cancer risk due to exposure to burn pits and other hazardous materials during service.

Learn more about air pollution in Indiana

Other important risks and considerations

Long-term inflammation or damage to the lungs may increase cancer risk. Conditions linked to a higher risk include:

  • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
  • Chronic bronchitis
  • Emphysema
  • History of pulmonary tuberculosis
  • Pulmonary fibrosis

If you have a history of lung disease, ask your provider whether you should be screened for lung cancer.

More about lung cancer screening

Lung cancer isn’t just a men’s disease:

  • Women in Indiana smoke at a higher rate than women in other states.
  • Women ages 30–49 are being diagnosed at higher rates than men.
  • About 20% of women diagnosed with lung cancer have never smoked, compared with just 8% of men.

Lung cancer screening is just as crucial for women as it is for men. Talk with a healthcare provider if you have a personal or family history of smoking or lung cancer.

More about lung cancer and women

Despite the advances in lung cancer research and treatment in recent years, we still see significant differences in outcomes among people in historically underserved populations. These differences in health outcomes appear in every aspect of lung cancer prevention, screening, and care.

The American Lung Association’s State of Lung Cancer 2025 Report shows that compared to white Americans:

  • Black individuals are 13% less likely to be diagnosed early, 19% less likely to receive surgical treatment, 11% more likely to not receive any treatment, and 13% less likely to survive five years.
  • Latino individuals are 18% less likely to be diagnosed early and 26% more likely to not receive any treatment.
  • People of Asian or Pacific Islander descent are 18% less likely to be diagnosed early.

These differences in health outcomes continue to persist in clinical trials as well, with non-White patients representing less than 25% of participants. Socioeconomic barriers also play a role in clinical trials, with patients on Medicare or receiving treatment at a non-academic hospital much less likely to participate.

By becoming community champions and amplifying marginalized voices, we can help reverse the trends of these outcomes.

Read the 2025 ALA State of Lung Cancer: Indiana Report

Get involved

End Lung Cancer Now turns awareness into local action. We need YOU to join us in the fight.

Advocacy looks different for everyone. We want you to feel inspired and empowered. Opportunities exist to align your interests with our vision.

Start right now, where you are, with just what you have, to make a difference.

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About End Lung Cancer Now

Our vision: End the suffering and death from lung cancer in Indiana.

Our mission: Reduce all modifiable risk factors for lung cancer, find lung cancer at its earliest detectable stage, enhance awareness and understanding of lung cancer research, and support lung cancer survivors and caregivers.

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