The nitric oxide/soluble guanylyl cyclase (NO-sGC) signaling pathway regulates the cardiovascular, neuronal, and gastrointestinal systems. Impaired sGC signaling can result in disease and system-wide organ failure. This review seeks to examine the redox control of sGC through heme and cysteine regulation while discussing therapeutic drugs that target various conditions. Heme regulation involves mechanisms of insertion of the heme moiety into the sGC protein, the molecules and proteins that control switching between the oxidized (Fe) and reduced states (Fe), and the activity of heme degradation. Modifications to cysteine residues by S-nitrosation on the α1 and β1 subunits of sGC have been shown to be important in sGC signaling. Moreover, redox balance and localization of sGC is thought to control downstream effects. In response to altered sGC activity due to changes in the redox state, many therapeutic drugs have been developed to target decreased NO-sGC signaling. The importance and relevance of sGC continues to grow as sGC dysregulation leads to numerous disease conditions.

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Annual screening with low dose chest tomography has been adopted for those at high risk to aid in the early detection of lung cancer. In addition to screening, it is recommended that such persons receive evidence-based smoking-cessation. However, both lung cancer screening and evidence-based smoking-cessation strategies are underutilized in the US. We review the impact of a dedicated Tobacco Treatment Clinic (TTC), delivering evidence-based smoking cessation strategies, on lung cancer screening enrollment. Patients of the TTC, aged 50 years or older, having a minimum 20-pack-year smoking history were included. All patients had records reviewed to see if they had received lung cancer screening; if their lung cancer screening was achieved through the TTC, this was documented as “initial screening” versus “continued screening or surveillance”. Sociodemographic variables were collected as well. As for results, between January 2019 to February 2020, 92 patients enrolled in the TTC and fulfilled criteria for lung cancer screening. The mean age was 65.7 ± 8.3 years old, with 58 (63.0%) of the patients being female. Seventy-five (81.5%) patients were African American. Of the 92, 68 (73.9%) patients had lung cancer screening, with 51 patients receiving their first lung cancer screening scan through the TTC. In conclusion, through enrollment in a dedicated TTC, a significant proportion of patients were able to access lung cancer screening for the first time. Further, many of these patients were of minority status. Having a dedicated TTC may improve current health equity gaps in lung cancer screenings in certain US populations.