Lung cancer screening: diagnosis in the nick of time

摘要

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide. Only 16% of patients survive for 5 years, compared to 89 % with breast cancer and almost 100 % with prostate cancer. Likewise, only 16% ofpatients withlung cancer are diagnosed before the disease has spread (vs. 60 % with breast cancer and 90 % with prostate cancer). "Once symptoms develop, it is too late", emphasised Giulia Veronesi, MD, Division of Thoracic Surgery, European Institute of Oncology, Milan, Italy.In contrast to breast and prostate cancer, identification of early lung cancer is not part of established screening programmes. As Dr. Veronesi noted, screening with low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) should be urgently implemented in Europe. LDCT has been shown to be superior to X-rays for the detection of NSCLC. "It is a non-invasive tool, and the examination can be performed quickly and at low cost, without the use of contrast medium."