New Intiative Will Improve Cancer Screening Services In BK, Queens

NEW YORK CITY, NY – Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center has launched a new initiative that will help residents in Brooklyn and Queens gain access to important cancer screening services, officials said.

The Ratner Early Detection Initiative (REDI) — named after longtime MSK board member, Bruce Ratner, will support communities throughout Queens and Brooklyn, where disparities in screening and access to care are present and problematic, according to hospital officials.

The five-year initiative will include Queens-based MediSys Health Network (comprised of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center and Flushing Hospital Medical Center) as well as other community-based organizations.

Increase access to lung cancer screening, new patient navigation services and the development of artificial intelligence (AI) tools to help improve early detection technology are just some of the things the initiative will accomplish.

“We have the technology to identify many cancers early when they are still curable, and we can do more to expand access to these tests, especially in low-income communities that have historically lacked access to health facilities,” Ratner said. “By increasing awareness of care access and cancer screening opportunities, and by providing the resources to help with initial and follow-up testing, we’re hopeful that we can save lives in these communities.”

“Patient navigators,” will support patients needs across the entire care timeline, officials said.

In addition, REDI will MSK data scientists and experts in radiology to co-develop AI tools that can improve data sharing to make more immediate and cost-effective differences in outcomes.

The REDI team will use its learnings from this initial phase to help with additional projects and expand on current initiatives.

"Diagnosing cancer at its earliest stage results in improved outcomes and a better quality of life for all patients,” said Lawrence Schwartz, Chair of the Department of Radiology at MSK.