Low Dose CT Screening for Lung Cancer Reduces Death by 20%
November 2010 - As you may be aware, there has been considerable recent press as well as interest in the medical community about the use of CT examinations to screen for lung cancer in high risk patients, particularly past and present smokers. It has long been known that CT scans are far more effective than chest-X-rays in identifying small sub-centimeter pulmonary nodules. However, this most recent study of more than 50,000 people sponsored by the National Cancer Institute has been the first to show a significant reduction in lung cancer mortality for the screened population. The mortality reduction of approximately 20% in the population of people who were screened is comparable to that seen for mammography.
Like most screening examinations, CT examinations of the chest involve a trade-off between sensitivity and specificity. It is known that a large percentage of adults have small pulmonary nodules, the vast majority of which are benign. This means that many patients who are being screened will need to undergo follow-up examinations to ensure that any detected nodules remain stable. At Doctors Groover, Christie, and Merritt, we have developed CT protocols which minimize radiation dose. This low-dose technique exposes the patient to only 25-50% of the dose normally used for CT examinations. In addition, no intravenous contrast is used for this study. Our radiologists use the Fleischner Society guidelines for the follow-up of detected nodules, which minimizes the number of subsequent examinations that the patient may have to undergo should a nodule be detected.
Because third-party payers are not currently covering this examination, these examinations will be self-pay studies, although the cost of the examination will be far less than a traditional CT examination of the chest. If you would like more information about this study, please contact any of our Imaging Centers. Read more.