Current and Former Smokers should get Annual CT scan of their lungs-US panel

Jojy Cheriyan MD;MPH -31 December, 2013

Some current smokers and former smokers should start getting yearly scans to rule out the risks of lung cancer and death, according to the proposal published yesterday by the U.S Preventive Services Task Force. This test is not for everyone who smokes, but for heavy smokers who are defined as those who smoked a pack a day for 30 years, or two packs a day for 15 years. .

After a long period of data analysis and comprehensive review of medical evidence, the Task Force published the final guidelines yesterday in the journal named Annals of Internal Medicine. The guidelines offer yearly CT scan of Lungs to people who are at especially high risk.

The high risk groups include- (1) those who smoked a pack of cigarettes a day for 30 years or an equivalent amount, such as two packs a day for 15 years (2) those who smoked in the same manner as above and are between the ages of 55 and 80. This will include former heavy smokers who have quit within the past 15 years.

Some exceptions are also included. Even those high-risk people shouldn't be scanned if they are not healthy enough to withstand cancer treatment, or if they stopped their smoking habit more than 15 years ago.

Lung cancer kills nearly 160,000 people in America every year. Smoking is the biggest risk factor, and risk becomes higher the more and longer you smoke.

The newly recommended screening is estimated to save 20,000 deaths a year.

The panel, which is comprised of independent experts and advises U.S. government, gave the screening a "B" recommendation, meaning it is moderately certain that the benefits of the scans outweigh the harms. Under the Affordable Care Act, insurers are required to cover preventive services with a grade of "B" or higher. This clears the way for insurers to begin paying for the scans, which cost $300-$500.

While American Cancer Society and American Society of Clinical Oncology played a pivotal role in making this decision, some doctors expressed concern that the guidelines could lead to over-diagnosis and over-treatment of cancers, in much the same way that widespread screening programs for breast and prostate cancers have done.

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