CLEARWATER, Fla. — For Al Parker, being out on a golf course is paradise. 

What You Need To Know

  • November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month

  • The U.S. Preventative Services Task Force recommends yearly lung cancer screenings with low-dose CT scans for anyone who has smoked for 20 or more years, or smokes now or has quit in the past 15 years and is over the age of 50

  • BayCare offers lung cancer programs with the multidisciplinary approach and robotic technology to assist in early detection of lung cancer at Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater, St. Joseph’s Hospital in Tampa and St. Anthony’s Hospital in St. Petersburg Robotic technology to assist in the early detection of lung cancer

“Other than my family, probably one of the most important things in my life is playing golf. It’s one of those things you get addicted to," said Parker. 

He likes the challenge of golf, the precision and the finesse. 

At the start of 2023, Parker had big plans to be on many fairways this year. 

“Oh yeah, they did change," smiles Parker to himself. "I had to cancel some of my golf trips this year.”

In January, he needed a CAT scan done to check on a heart condition.

“I got the call, 'Hey, you got a blocked artery, and by the way, there is a spot on your lung,'” said Parker, recalling the conversation.

He was not expecting to hear about anything on his lungs. But to be safe, he decided to get the spot biopsied at BayCare's Morton Plant's Nodule Clinic.

His procedure was completed by Dr. Joseph Romero, BayCare Pulmonologist. He is the lead physician at the lung nodule clinic, where biopsies are done to nodules, lesions and masses to see if they are cancerous. 

For the past two years, Morton Plant has used an ION machine to catch lung cancer early. Lung cancer cases that may have only been treatable in the past are now curable. 

"It allows us to have access to things we really didn’t have access to before," said Dr. Romero. "Things that were deemed too dangerous or too risky to get after. We are pretty much going after all of them now."

The machine uses a camera that is inserted down a person's mouth, through their tracheal tube, and then into their lungs. 

Once there, Dr. Romero guides the camera with controls to the problem spots, already identified through scans. 

“The virtual model here that is created by the CAT scan essentially almost perfectly matches what we see in real life," said Dr. Michael Kayatta, Cardiothoracic Surgeon. 

Once the biopsy results came back on Parker's nodule, showing it was cancerous, Dr. Kayatta was the one to surgically remove the spot. 

Dr. Kayatta said the early diagnosis saved Parker. 

“It is often diagnosed in the later stages where it really isn’t much of a chance of a cure. But if we are able to find it in an early stage, like a stage one lung cancer, we can cure those patients," said Dr. Kayatta. 

Parker knows how lucky he is that his first heart CAT scan showed that spot on his lung. 

“I am a Christian, so I feel like I got led by the hand," he said with tears in his eyes. 

He has friends who are not so lucky. 

“They were looking and looking. By the time they finally figured it out, he was stage three. And now he is stage four, it’s in his liver, it’s in his lungs. They gave him less than a year to live now," said Parker. 

Unlike Parker's friend, his early diagnosis and treatment of his lung cancer means that he will live. He won't even need chemotherapy or radiation. 

“Every day is a blessing now. Every day that I wake up is a great day. I don’t have bad days anymore," said Parker. 

Cancer-free and out on the Ardea Country Club golf course playing another round, Parker just smiles.

When it comes to lung screenings for cancer, the latest guidelines from the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force state people between 50 and 80 years old with a 20-year history of smoking, who are actively smoking or quit within the last 15 years should get screened. 

Dr. Kayatta said those screenings are often covered by insurance, Medicare or Medicaid.