ASCO 2018 Preview: Low Rates of Lung Cancer Screening Across the United States
Posted: Thursday, May 17, 2018
A new study, led by Danh Pham, MD, BA, of the James Brown Cancer Center in Louisville, Kentucky, shows that low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening rates for lung cancer remain inadequate across the United States. In 2013, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommended annual screening for individuals between age 55 and 80, who have smoked at least 30 pack-years, and who currently smoke or have quit within the past 15 years. However, rates of lung cancer screening have not improved since implementation of these guidelines. These new study results will be presented at the 2018 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago (Abstract 6504).
“This study makes a strong case that our country needs an effective public service campaign about encouraging lung cancer screening,” stated ASCO President Bruce E. Johnson, MD, FASCO. “We hope this [study] will be a call to action….”
The authors collected the total number of LDCTs (n = 141,260) available for 2016 from 1,796 accredited radiographic screening sites across the country, using data from the Lung Cancer Screening Registry, provided by the American College of Radiology. Using the 2015 National Health Interview Survey, Dr. Pham and colleagues estimated screening eligible smokers per the USPSTF criteria from.
A total of 1.9% of the approximately 7.6 million eligible smokers in the country were screened. Screening rates varied regionally and ranged from 1.0% in the West to 3.5% in the Northeast. The South had one of the lowest rates of lung cancer screening, despite having the majority of eligible smokers and the highest number of accredited screening centers.
The reasons behind the low rates of lung cancer screening versus other cancer screening modalities remain unclear. The authors suggest that further initiatives are necessary, and lung cancer screening should be mandated as a national quality measure.
