Joelle Fathi: Unlocking the Origins of Lung Cancer

GO2 for Lung Cancer Chief Healthcare Delivery Officer Joelle Fathi, DNP, RN, ARNP, CTTS, FAANP, FAAN has a family history of lung cancer; both her mother and maternal grandmother were diagnosed with the disease. So, it came as no surprise when Fathi enrolled in a study looking into the inherited risk of lung cancer in families.

The study, called INHERIT, builds on earlier clinical research that identified one specific genetic mutation linked to lung cancer. GO2 for Lung Cancer is collaborating with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute (ALCMI), GO2’s medical consortium, to examine other genetic mutations found in lung cancer. This study will include significantly more people than previous research.

We sat down with Fathi to learn about her family history, the importance of the study, and what it may mean for people diagnosed with lung cancer.

Tell me about your family’s history with lung cancer. 

My mother was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in her early 50s, and her mother (my grandmother) was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) in her early 60s.

What impact has your family history with lung cancer had on you? Is that why you work in this field?

The predominance of multigenerational lung cancer in women in my family spurred my attention and concern for my own risk long ago. My journey to working in various areas of oncology, including lung cancer, builds on my professional experiences in the direct line of care of people at risk and living with tobacco-related diseases.

What motivated you to enroll in INHERIT? 

I see INHERIT as one major route to controlling lung cancer through scientific discovery and evidence that informs us on the next steps.

What impact do you think the outcomes of INHERIT will have on the lung cancer community in the future? The future of lung cancer care and treatment? 

INHERIT extends an opportunity for people like me to take action and hopefully influence the direction of my health and the future health of my children.

Is there anything else you would like to share? 

Compared to a few years ago, so much more is known about lung cancer, and we’ve witnessed revelations in therapeutic options to control this disease. But people are still developing the disease and dying from it. INHERIT promises to broaden the reach and impact of possibilities in harnessing this disease once and for all.