New guidelines provide screening recommendations for people at higher risk of developing lung cancer

Jan 7 2014

Alarmingly, more than 200,000 Americans will be diagnosed with lung cancer this year and nearly 160,000 people will die of the disease. In fact, according to the American Cancer Society, lung cancer takes more lives each year than colorectal, breast and prostate cancers combined. Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA) experts are committed to reducing these lethal statistics and have developed tools to simplify lung cancer prevention and screening recommendations. The Breath of Fresh Air infographic offers guidance on smoking cessation and the Breaking News infographic provides risk factors and screening recommendations for those who believe they are at a higher risk of developing lung cancer.

"The first step towards preventing lung cancer is avoiding cigarettes which cause 85 percent of diagnoses," said Dr. David Madtes, director of the Lung Cancer Early Detection and Prevention Clinic at SCCA. "For those at higher risk, early detection is the key to survival. Low-dose CT screening for patients at high risk saves lives by empowering doctors to detect lung cancer at an earlier stage with the option of removing it surgically."

Cigarette smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, many of them cancer-causing substances (carcinogens) that damage the cells in the lungs, greatly increasing an individual's risk of developing lung cancer. Additionally, smoking increases the risk of more than a dozen other cancers, including cancers of the mouth, nose and sinuses, esophagus, liver, pancreas, stomach, kidney, bladder, cervix, and bowel. Research also shows that patients already diagnosed with cancer benefit from quitting their tobacco use. Benefits include fewer complications when receiving various cancer treatments, better outcomes from treatments, and improved quality of life and survival rates.

While the risk of lung cancer increases with the length of time and number of cigarettes smoked, it's never too late to quit. Just five years after quitting smoking the risk for developing cancers of the mouth, throat, bladder, and esophagus is cut in half. Through SCCA's Lung Cancer Early Detection and Prevention Clinic, individuals can access the Living Tobacco Free Program which includes support from tobacco-cessation counselors. With a goal of aiding individuals in becoming comfortable and confident non-smokers, counselors offer a variety of approaches, including medication to manage nicotine-withdrawal symptoms, tools to manage stress, strategies to break the habit of smoking, and educational information about other resources for quitting. To date, four out of five active smokers cared for in the Prevention Clinic have participated in our smoking cessation program.

SCCA lung cancer experts believe early detection is a proven and successful strategy for fighting lung cancer for those at high risk for lung cancer. Furthering this belief, a National Lung Screening Trial published in June 2011 showed that by detecting lung cancer at its earliest stage and removing it surgically, patients can expect a five-year survival rate close to 70 percent. As a result of these findings, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recently published a revised recommendation for lung cancer screening. Following the USPSTF guidelines, SCCA recommends anyone with a high risk for developing lung cancer should be screened annually with low-dose computed tomography (CT). The USPSTF and SCCA define high risk as:

• Ages 55 to 80 years old
• A history of heavy smoking (Heavy smoking is smoking for 30 "pack years" or more. A "pack year" is smoking an average of one pack of cigarettes everyday for a year.)
• Current smokers or those who have quit smoking within the past 15 years