Study shows that LDCT screening reduces lung cancer deaths by almost 20%
According to an analysis published early online in Cancer, screening eligible current and former smokers for lung cancer with low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) could prevent approximately 12,000 lung cancer deaths in the United States each year.
Conducted from 2002 through 2009, the National Lung Screening Trial found that LDCT screening reduces lung cancer deaths by about 20% compared with chest x-ray. These results were determined among 55- to 74-year-old current and former smokers (those who quit within 15 years) who had smoked at least 30 pack-years (1 pack per day for 30 years or 2 packs per day for 15 years.)
Jiemin Ma, PhD, of the American Cancer Society in Atlanta, using the National Lung Screening Trial information plus the US population size and other data, determined that approximately 8.6 million Americans were eligible for LDCT lung cancer screening in 2010 based on the standards used during the trial. When combining this finding with information on lung cancer death rates, Ma and colleagues projected that approximately 12,000 lung cancer deaths would be delayed or prevented each year in the US if all Americans eligible for screening were to receive LDCT screening.
Dr Ahmedin Jemal, a coauthor of the paper said, “Our findings provide a better understanding of the national-level impact of LDCT screening, which has the potential to save thousands of lives per year.”
Source: Wiley.