Lung cancer can be a complex disease that requires a thorough and accurate diagnosis. In many cases, lung cancer is diagnosed in advanced stages, which may make the disease more difficult to treat. Screening for lung cancer in high-risk patients may detect the disease early, when more lung cancer treatment options may be available.
At City of Hope® Cancer Center Atlanta, our diagnostic imaging experts, pulmonologist, thoracic surgeons and pathologists will provide fast, screening results. If your results indicate the possible presence of cancer, our team will help you understand your screening results, and discuss the treatment options available to you.
Our lung cancer screening and diagnostic programs offer these potential benefits:
During lung cancer screening, doctors look for signs of disease, even when there are no obvious symptoms. Screening is recommended for individuals who may be at high risk for lung cancer, either because of age or history of smoking.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends annual lung cancer screening if you:
* Heavy smoking means a smoking history of 20 pack years or more. A pack year is an average of one pack of cigarettes a day for one year. If you smoked a pack of cigarettes a day for 20 years, you have a 20-pack-year history.
Low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) is currently the only screening test recommended by the USPSTF for patients with a high risk of lung cancer. While LDCT uses radiation to see inside the body, research shows that LDCT is better at detecting early-stage lung cancer than a chest X-ray alone and may significantly reduce the chances of dying from the disease.
To screen for lung cancer, LDCT uses low doses of radiation to take a series of images of the lungs. These images are then combined to provide a more detailed, cross-sectional view of the lungs. Images produced by LDCT are more likely to show lung tumors, better estimating their size and shape, as well as identifying whether nearby lymph nodes may be affected. LDCT scans are painless and often take just a few minutes.
Smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer. Eighty percent of all lung cancer deaths are linked to smoking tobacco. The disease may also be caused by secondhand smoke or exposure to other substances and pollutants, such as toxic gasses, air pollution, asbestos or radon. Here are some other facts about lung cancer:
