Originally published July 9, 2021
Coral Olazagasti, MD, and Nagashree Seetharamu, MD, MBBS
Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death worldwide. It carries a 5-year overall survival rate of less than 20%, mainly resulting from the often advanced stage at diagnosis. Lung cancer screening guidelines were implemented by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) in 2011 and 2013, respectively, after landmark clinical trials, such as the National Lung Screening Trial and The Dutch–Belgian Randomized Lung Cancer Screening Trial, showed earlier diagnosis and decreased mortality rates with low-dose CT (LDCT) as a screening modality. 6 Despite these recommendations, lung cancer screening remains vastly underused to date, with less than 20% of the high-risk eligible population undergoing lung cancer screening. Low rates of lung cancer screening are even more noticeable among underserved populations. Herein, we discuss three abstracts from the 2021 ASCO Annual Meeting that address disparities in lung cancer screening, including an abstract we coauthored.
Read more in ASCO Daily News.
Additional Resources
Addressing Disparities in Use of Lung Cancer Screening With Community Outreach, The ASCO Post, Michael Weyant
Lung Cancer Screening Guidelines May Be Inadequate for High-Risk Minorities, The ASCO Post
