Guidelines from the ACS recommend annual lung cancer screening with
low-dose computed tomography (CT) scans for adults ages 55 to 74 in fairly good health with a smoking history of at least 30 pack-years (for example, smoking a pack of cigarettes a day for 30 years or two packs a day for at least 15 years) and who still smoke or have quit within the past 15 years.
Using
low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) instead of X-rays helped reduce lung cancer deaths in current and former smokers, the study authors said.
The screening test is called
low-dose computed tomography, or low-dose CT.
Danh Pham, M.D., from the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville in Kentucky, and colleagues used data from the Lung Cancer Screening Registry (LCSR) in 2016 to obtain information on the total number of
low-dose computed tomography screenings from all 1,796 accredited radiographic screening sites.
AHRQ recently released Lung Cancer Screening Tools, including a decision aid, for patients and clinicians to facilitate discussions about lung cancer screening with
low-dose computed tomography.
Approximately 58% of the eligible patients consented, and 2,106 underwent screening with
low-dose computed tomography (LDCT).
Strombeck, and P Sahlstrand-Johnson, "
Low-dose computed tomography of the paranasal sinuses: radiation doses and reliability analysis," American Journal of Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Medicine and Surgery, vol.
Roodman et al., "Whole-body
low-dose computed tomography and advanced imaging techniques for multiple myeloma bone disease," Clinical Cancer Research, vol.
Just over one year ago, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services approved annual screening for lung cancer with
low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) as a preventive service.
However, the National Lung Screening Trial provides evidence that routine
low-dose computed tomography (CT) screening can be effective, provided the guidelines are followed strictly and the operative morbidity and mortality is sufficiently low.
Screening for lung cancer with
low-dose computed tomography: A systematic review to update the US Preventive services task force recommendation.
"If we can develop a simple blood test thats more accurate than
low-dose computed tomography (CT) scans, we can detect the cancer earlier with a less expensive, less invasive and more accurate blood test.