When you think of a "safety net" in a hospital, you probably imagine social workers or ER staff. You don't necessarily think of data-driven tracking systems or clinical research coordinators. But at Mount Sinai, that's exactly where Junyu Qi has been making a mark.
Health systems are huge. They're chaotic. People get scans for one thing—maybe a broken rib or a chest cold—and a doctor spots a tiny "incidental" nodule on their lung. These aren't why the patient came in. Because of that, they’re easy to forget. Honestly, it's a massive problem in American healthcare. Estimates suggest that up to 60% of these incidental lung nodules (ILNs) are simply lost to follow-up.
That’s where the work of people like Junyu Qi, MPH, comes in. Working within the Mount Sinai Health System, specifically with the teams at Mount Sinai Morningside and Mount Sinai West, Qi has been deeply involved in a program designed to catch these patients before they disappear into the cracks.
The Mount Sinai Lung Nodule Program
In January 2023, Mount Sinai launched the Incidental Lung Nodule Program (ILNP). It’s basically a system-wide safety net. If a radiologist flags a nodule on a scan, the program ensures that the patient doesn't just get a letter they might not read. Instead, there's a systematic effort to manage these findings.
Junyu Qi has served as a Clinical Research Coordinator II within this framework. Research coordinators are the gears that keep the clinical engine turning. They handle the data, the patient tracking, and the analysis that proves whether a medical intervention actually works. At the 2025 American Thoracic Society (ATS) International Conference, Qi presented findings on how this specific program is changing the game for early lung cancer detection.
Think about the stakes here. A lung nodule has about a 5% chance of being cancerous. If you catch it early, the survival rate is high. If you wait until the patient starts coughing up blood two years later, it's often too late. By improving follow-up rates, the ILNP is quite literally finding cancers that would have otherwise gone undetected until they were untreatable.
Breaking Through the Fog with AI
One of the coolest parts of the recent research coming out of this group is the integration of Artificial Intelligence. It’s a hot topic, but at Mount Sinai, it’s being used for very specific, practical tasks.
Qi’s work has touched on using AI models to predict things like chronic respiratory failure or to detect airway obstructions. At the ATS 2025 conference, the presentation "Breaking Through the Fog: AI..." highlighted how these models are being tested in real-world clinical settings. It’s not just about "tech for tech's sake." It’s about looking at the massive pile of Electronic Health Record (EHR) data and pulling out the "snapshots" of symptoms that a human doctor might miss during a busy ten-minute encounter.
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Why Follow-Up Rates Matter
You might wonder why it's so hard to follow up on a simple scan.
Healthcare is fragmented. You might get an X-ray at an urgent care, a follow-up at a specialist, and your primary care doctor might not see the notes for weeks. Qi and the research team, led by experts like Dr. Javier J. Zulueta, have been digging into the "why" behind these failures.
Recent studies involving Junyu Qi Mount Sinai have looked at the demographics of who gets left behind. For instance, research published in the Journal of Thoracic Oncology examined how factors like race and insurance status affect follow-up rates. It turns out, that the "safety net" doesn't always catch everyone equally.
By identifying these gaps, the team can tailor the program to be more equitable. It’s not just about the science of the lung; it’s about the sociology of the patient.
Life as a Research Coordinator
It’s a demanding role. You’re the bridge between the high-level vision of the physicians and the gritty reality of the data.
- Qi manages the flow of information for complex studies.
- The role involves presenting at major international conferences like ATS.
- There's a constant focus on "downstream testing"—meaning, what happens after the nodule is found.
- They track complications from biopsies and the proportion of early-stage cancers caught.
This isn't "ivory tower" research. It's front-line work. When Qi presents a poster at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, they’re sharing data that could change how every hospital in the country handles lung scans.
The Future of Lung Screening at Mount Sinai
The 2025 data is promising. We’re seeing significantly improved follow-up rates compared to the pre-2023 era.
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There's also a big push to expand who is "eligible" for screening. Traditionally, you had to be a heavy smoker of a certain age. But incidental nodules don't care about your smoking history. Qi's involvement in research regarding "incidental lung nodules: unveiling the undetected population" suggests that we might need to be looking at a much broader group of people than we currently do.
Honestly, the goal is to make "lost to follow-up" a phrase of the past.
Actionable Insights for Patients and Providers
If you’re a patient or someone navigating the Mount Sinai system, there are a few things you can take away from the research produced by Qi and the lung nodule team:
- Ask About Your Scans: If you have an imaging test for any reason, ask your doctor point-blank: "Were there any incidental findings or nodules mentioned in the radiologist's report?"
- Use the Portal: Mount Sinai’s EHR (MyChart) is where these flags often appear. If you see a mention of a "nodule," don't panic, but do ensure a follow-up is scheduled.
- The Two-Year Rule: Much of the research, including the study "A Two-year Follow-up Study of an Innovative Lung Nodule Program," suggests that consistency over 24 months is the key to confirming a nodule isn't growing.
The work of Junyu Qi Mount Sinai reflects a broader shift in medicine. It's moving away from reacting to symptoms and moving toward a proactive, data-driven "safety net" model. It’s about making sure that in a system of millions, the individual with a 4mm spot on their lung doesn't get forgotten.
To stay on top of your own lung health, ensure that any "incidental" findings in your medical records are discussed with a pulmonologist, especially if you have a history of smoking or environmental exposure. If you are within the Mount Sinai system, you can specifically ask if your case is being tracked through the Incidental Lung Nodule Program to ensure you're receiving the standardized follow-up care the research supports.