Newsletter Articles
A Defining Moment in Advancing Cancer Care
A Message from President Dr. McGee
At OSF HealthCare Cancer Institute, our commitment to innovation is grounded in a singular purpose: to detect cancer earlier, treat it more effectively and ultimately save more lives. This calling is not theoretical – it is lived out each day through the integration of clinical excellence, advanced technology and a deep commitment to the patients and families we serve. Today, I am proud to share a milestone that reflects the extraordinary work of our teams and the power of our purpose in action.
In May, OSF Cancer Institute will be represented on one of the world’s most prestigious stages, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago. Among more than 8,500 abstracts submitted from across the globe, our research was selected for oral presentation, an honor achieved by less than 1% of submissions.
Our study, “Implementing a centralized navigator-led and AI-assisted platform to improve lung cancer screening rates and early detection: A 6-year health system analysis,” led by Dr. Jun Zhang, vice president of Oncology Research, highlights a six-year transformation in lung cancer screening across our Ministry. Clinically, lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths, largely due to late-stage diagnosis. Increasing screening rates, particularly through low-dose CT (LDCT), is one of the most effective strategies to reduce mortality, yet national uptake has remained persistently low. By implementing a centralized, navigator-led model supported by artificial intelligence, we have more than doubled lung cancer screening rates significantly improving early detection, particularly in rural communities.
This model integrates AI-assisted identification of high-risk patients within the electronic health record with a dedicated navigation infrastructure thereby removing barriers for primary care providers while ensuring timely screening, follow-up and continuity of care. The result is a scalable, data-driven approach that closes critical gaps in access and equity.
This work is more than data, it represents lives changed. Between 2020 and 2025, our screening rates increased from 18.2% to 42.8%, dramatically outpacing the national average. This progression reflects a fundamental shift toward earlier-stage diagnosis where lung cancer is most treatable. and survival outcomes are significantly improved. Notably, our rural facilities experienced some of the greatest gains in Stage 1 detection, reinforcing our commitment to reducing geographic disparities in care.
To be selected for oral presentation at ASCO – attended by more than 40,000 oncology professionals from around the world – is a powerful affirmation that the work happening within OSF HealthCare Cancer Institute is leading the way in shaping the future of cancer care.
This recognition belongs to our physicians, researchers, navigators and care teams who relentlessly pursue better outcomes for our patients. It also belongs to you, our supporters and partners, whose belief in our Mission makes this level of innovation possible.
Together, we are not only advancing care, we are redefining what is possible, bringing hope to patients earlier in their journey, and setting a new standard for cancer care locally, nationally and around the world.
President
OSF HealthCare Cancer Institute
Two Patients. One Purpose. A Future Changed.
Two Patients. One Purpose. A Future Changed.
At OSF HealthCare Cancer Institute, patients often arrive carrying very different stories, different fears, different diagnoses, different outcomes. Yet sometimes, those paths quietly converge, shaping something far greater than any single journey.
These are two of those stories.
When the first patient came to the gynecologic oncology clinic, she was afraid, but resolute. With a strong family history of ovarian cancer, she trusted her instincts when she felt a pelvic mass. She knew she needed expert care, and she knew where she wanted to receive it. “I wanted to be seen at OSF,” she told her care team. “I trusted the surgical expertise and wanted the best possible outcome.”
When she was invited to participate in the EV Pap research trial, and after discussion with her caregiver, Michelle Rowland, MD, her decision was immediate and deeply personal. Her motivation went beyond her own diagnosis. “I don’t want women to have to wait until there’s a mass to find out something is wrong,” she said. “I wanted to be part of change.”
Her surgery went well. Her pathology came back benign.
At first, she worried that her participation hadn’t mattered; that because she didn’t have cancer, her role in the study had been insignificant. But the opposite was true.
Her noncancerous samples were essential. They helped researchers validate the test’s accuracy and specificity and in answering a critical question: Can this tool reliably distinguish between benign and malignant tissue? Her contribution became part of the scientific foundation that could one day help detect ovarian cancer earlier, when it is most treatable.
Because of the Sister Diane Marie Gynecological Research Fund, the trial existed when she needed it. It wasn’t delayed. It wasn’t theoretical. It was real.
And so was her impact.
The second patient’s journey began differently. An incidental finding led her to the same gynecologic oncology clinic and to surgery she never expected to need. When the research team and Rebecca Byler Dann, MD, approached her about enrolling in the EV Pap trial, she hesitated. She wasn’t sure what to think. She wasn’t sure what to hope for. But she knew she wanted to help.
Her mass did turn out to be cancer.
Even then, especially then, she chose to continue participating in the trial, contributing samples during her standard-of-care oncology visits. She didn’t have to. But she wanted to.
“This is bigger than me,” she shared with her care team. “If my journey can help someone else, then something meaningful can come from this.”
She spoke of her children. And her children’s children. Of a future where families might not have to walk the same difficult road.
Through her participation, she wasn’t just receiving care, she was shaping the future of care.
Two patients. Two outcomes. One shared purpose.
Together, their stories reveal the true power of donor-supported research; patients empowered to transform fear into progress, and uncertainty into hope. Because of generosity, innovation moves forward, and because of courage, the future of cancer care is rewritten every day.
That is the impact of this work.
That is the difference philanthropy makes.