A routine lung scan helped Nelle find lung cancer early

At 71, Nelle was enjoying a busy, fulfilling life in Middle Tennessee—keeping up with her family, participating in local yoga classes, and preparing for retirement. Having managed a history of asthma and histoplasmosis since childhood, she was always diligent about attending her annual physicals. Because of her history as an intermittent smoker, her doctor recommended she start getting routine low-dose CT lung scans. For years, those scans showed a tiny, unchanging spot on her lung that was believed to be an old scar.

Then came a turning point. After recovering from a severe case of bronchitis, Nelle underwent her annual scan. This time, the results showed that the spot had grown. Following this initial consultation, Nelle felt overwhelmed by the proposed path forward from her current doctor and decided she wanted a fresh perspective. "This was really serious, and I wanted to get a second opinion," Nelle said. "I wanted to do this closer to home."

Her search for localized, personalized care led her to a pulmonologist at Williamson Medical, who listened to her preferences and referred her to thoracic surgeon Dr. John Lazar at Ascension Saint Thomas Hospital West. From their very first meeting, Nelle knew she had found the right physician. "He walked into the room, and he’s the only doctor in 70 years who has said: 'I know what’s on this screen over here, and we can talk about that in a minute, but right now I want to talk about you. I want to know who you are as a person. I want to know what you want to get out of this.' I felt heard, respected, and like he truly cared about me.”

Nelle also carried a deep personal fear of being put under general anesthesia, telling Dr. Lazar that she did not want to be put to sleep unless it was absolutely necessary. Rather than rushing straight to a major operation, Dr. Lazar took a thoughtful, holistic approach that put her mind at ease. Knowing her history, he first ordered blood tests to help determine whether conditions such as histoplasmosis could explain the lung nodule.. "He didn't want to jump right in—he's a surgeon, but he cared about me more than adding another surgery to his schedule," Nelle says.

On August 11, 2026, when surgery was determined to be the next step, Dr. Lazar designed a single, combined procedure to minimize her time under anesthesia, performing the biopsy and moving directly into treatment in the same room. Rather than removing an entire lobe of her lung, he performed a targeted wedge resection using robotic-assisted technology. "He really thought through what was the best thing for me here," Nelle said. "He got it all, and I didn't have to have any chemo. All the lymph glands were clear."

Her immediate recovery required rest, patience, and help from her husband and son. After some time, she began taking short walks outside, slowly building her strength back up day by day. "I could just see little changes every day,” said Nelle.

Today, Nelle is hitting nearly 10,000 steps a day, returning to her yoga classes, and participating in Ascension Saint Thomas's virtual smoking cessation support group as she navigates her retirement transition. "My cousin used to call this age group (71) the '4th quarter.' Something like this really brings that to the forefront: How am I going to spend this 4th quarter and make the most of every minute?”, said Nelle.

Nelle had no physical symptoms of lung cancer when her scan came back abnormal, and she knows that without regular screening, her cancer would have continued to grow unnoticed. "I had no idea that anything was going on in there—I really feel like that scan saved my life," Nelle said. "People need to realize that these scans take two seconds to do, and they save lives.”

If you are between the ages of 50 and 80 and currently smoke or have a history of smoking, talk to your doctor about scheduling a screening. Learn more about low-dose CT lung screenings at Ascension Saint Thomas