Low-Dose CT Scans Are Used to Screen High-Risk Patients for Lung Cancer: Are YOU a Candidate?
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Did you know that although lung cancer screening is extremely effective at identifying lung cancer in the early stages and improving survival rates, 95.5% of people who qualify for lung cancer screening have not been screened?
Here’s what you need to know about lung cancer, lung cancer screening, and whether you qualify.
Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in the United States. According to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 234,580 new cases of lung cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S. in 2024.
Lung cancer is also the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S., accounting for about 20% of all cancer deaths. This is because cases are often diagnosed at later stages when the disease is less likely to be curable.
The good news is that the five-year survival rate for lung cancer has increased greatly over the last five years. One reason for this positive development is the availability of effective screening.
Lung cancer screening of high-risk populations is the best way to reduce mortality from lung cancer because it can catch lung cancer in its earlier stages. When lung cancer is diagnosed in an early stage, before it has spread, the five-year survival rate is greater than 63%. When diagnosed in a late stage, the five-year survival rate is just 8%.
Unfortunately, according to the American Lung Association’s State of Lung Cancer 2023 Report, only 4.5% of individuals eligible for lung cancer screening were screened in 2022. Lung cancer screenings are conducted using low-dose CT (LDCT) scansfor people at high risk for lung cancer, such as heavy smokers. In March 2021, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) changed its lung cancer screening recommendations to include a larger age range and more current and former smokers.
The goal of these low-dose CT scans for lung cancer screening is to identify early-stage lung cancers that can still be treated with either surgery or radiation — and treated for cure, treated definitively.
Meriem Mokhtech, MD, Radiation Oncologist
Screening guidelines
Under the current USPSTF guidelines, you are eligible for annual lung cancer screening if you:
- • Are aged 50–80
- • Currently smoke or quit within the last 15 years
- • Have a smoking history of 20 or more pack years.
To obtain your “pack-year” number, use this equation: Pack years = (cigarettes per day÷20) × number of years smoked. So, someone who smoked 1 pack per day for 20 years would have a 20 pack-year history, as would someone who smoked 2 packs a day for 10 years.
If you meet the criteria, lung cancer screening is usually covered by your insurance. If you are not covered by insurance the cost is around $200. Contact your primary care physician, who can determine whether you meet the criteria and refer you to a local organization for screening.
Most insurers require a counseling visit before screening. During this visit, you will discuss your medical history, receive a detailed assessment of your personal risk for lung cancer, and discuss the potential advantages and disadvantages of lung cancer screening. The screening itself is simple, painless, and noninvasive, and there are no needles or injections involved. It takes approximately 30 minutes. You will be asked to lie on your back on a table with your arms over your head. The table will slide to the center of the CT machine and the scanner will rotate around you, taking pictures of your lungs. The technologist will instruct you to remain very still and may ask that you hold your breath at times throughout the scan to obtain clear images. For screening to be most effective, people in this high-risk population should be screened annually.
“The goal of these low-dose CT scans for lung cancer screening is to identify early-stage lung cancers that can still be treated with either surgery or radiation — and treated for cure, treated definitively,” said Dr. Meriem Mokhtech, an HLRCC radiation oncologist. “Once a lung cancer has spread to lymph nodes or outside of the thorax, a cure becomes a lot more difficult to achieve, and the treatments are much more involved. The goal is to catch things early so that they can be treated.”
Where to go for lung cancer screening near Waterbury, CT
Naugatuck Valley Radiology Associates
1389 West Main Street
Waterbury, CT 06708
(203) 574-1311
nvranet.com
Diagnostic Radiology Associates
134 Grandview Avenue, Suite 101
Waterbury, CT 06708
(203) 756-8911
draxray.com
Prospect Diagnostic Imaging
166 Waterbury Road, Suite 105
Prospect, CT 06712
(203) 758-7700
For more information, use the American College of Radiology’s Lung Cancer Screening Locator Tool or visit the Connecticut State Department of Health.