Trusted Instinct

The smoke that traveled south from the Canadian wildfires in the summer of 2023 made the outside air difficult to breathe and exacerbated symptoms for asthma sufferers like Joan Klein. With imminent plans to travel cross-country to California to visit her daughter, Joan recalled thinking “I should probably go see my pulmonologist, Dr. Acharya, to make sure it is okay to fly,” she said. “I was being proactive about one thing, and it turns out they found another!”

As Pinak Acharya, MD, performed lung function and diagnostic tests to clear Joan for travel, he discovered something troubling. “When a patient comes in, we do a full review of their records, including previous imaging. We’d monitored Joan and had established a baseline for her. Unfortunately, I found a suspicious nodule on the left lobe of her lung,” said Dr. Acharya. “Some nodules can come and go, but Joan had a strong history of cancer in her family and this nodule had increased in size.”

New Technology, Greater Accuracy

In 2022, Doylestown Hospital acquired the state-of-the-art Ion Endoluminal System, a minimally invasive robotic-assisted bronchoscopy device to reach smaller, hard-to-reach nodules. This technology allows physicians to locate, biopsy, and mark lung nodules for surgical resection in one procedure and with greater accuracy. With the Ion technology located at the hospital, “we have improved our diagnostic capabilities, and our patients can have answers more quickly. By decreasing time between tests and diagnosis, we can alleviate stress for our patients and move forward quickly with treatment options,” said Dr. Acharya, who is board certified in critical care medicine, pulmonary disease and internal medicine.

Joan was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma, a malignant type of cancer. “It was very fortunate that Joan made the decision to come in when she did,” said Dr. Acharya. “Early detection improves lung cancer survival rates by 20%.”

Comprehensive Treatment Close to Home

Instead of traveling to California, Joan was referred to Doylestown Health’s Cancer Institute and began treatment in October of 2023. “My cancer was Stage 1B,” said Joan, “which was promising because we caught it early. It was still very scary.”

Fortunately, Joan’s daughter could attend the consultations remotely to support her. With her background as a social worker, Joan was “well aware of how important it is to have a support system,” she said. “It was very important to me to have medical care that is local and known for excellence—all of my doctors are at Doylestown Health. My late husband was a physician and I have high expectations!”

The multidisciplinary team at Doylestown Health determined the best approach for Joan’s cancer. “We removed the left lobe of her lung to ensure that this cancer would not re-occur,” said Dr. Acharya.

“I spent a week as an inpatient at Doylestown Hospital,” said Joan. “The nurses were highly trained and so attentive. I felt like I was being guided in the best possible way. Everyone had my best interests at heart, and I had a lot of faith and confidence in my team,” she added.

Living with Lung Cancer

Joan manages her post-operative regimen with medication. “I’m on a regimen of one pill daily and I go to the hospital once a month for bloodwork,” she said. “While the side effects of the medication can be tricky, it’s certainly better than what could have been.”

Having the all-clear for the next travel opportunity, Joan appreciates spending the winter months in Florida. “I feel great and enjoy water aerobics. My stamina is very good,” she said. “I’m very grateful to Dr. Acharya and everyone at Doylestown Health’s Cancer Institute.”

Contributing Caregiver

Pinak Acharya, MD is a pulmonologist with Doylestown Health. He is board certified in critical care medicine, pulmonary disease and internal medicine.