Close X
Thursday, November 28, 2024
ADVT 
Health

New Guidelines Back CT Scans For Lung Cancer Screening In Longtime Smoke

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 07 Mar, 2016 10:33 AM
    TORONTO — New guidelines suggest adults aged 55 to 74 who are at high risk of lung cancer due to a history of smoking should be screened annually over three consecutive years using low-dose CT scans.
     
    The guidelines from the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care apply to current smokers and those who have quit within the past 15 years with at least a so-called 30 pack-year history of smoking.
     
    A 30 pack-year history would include a person who smoked one pack a day for 30 years, or two packs a day for 15 years.
     
    The guidelines are based on recent studies, including a clinical trial that found a 15 per cent reduction in lung cancer deaths among those screened with a CT scan compared to a chest X-ray.   
     
    The task force advises against screening for lung cancer with chest X-rays. It also does not recommend screening among adults outside the 55 to 74 age range, regardless of their smoking history. 
     
     
     
    Lung cancer is the most common cancer in Canada and the No. 1 cause of death from cancer. In 2015, about 26,600 Canadians were diagnosed with lung cancer, and almost 21,000 died from the disease.
     
    "Screening for lung cancer aims to detect disease at an earlier stage, when it may respond better to treatment and be less likely to cause serious illness or death," Dr. Gabriela Lewin, chairwoman of the task force's working group, said in a release Monday.
     
    The recommendations do not apply to people with a family history of lung cancer or those with symptoms suggestive of lung cancer. For people with other risk factors for lung cancer — such as exposure to radon or second-hand smoke, or previous radiation to the chest — it is unknown whether there is benefit from screening with low-dose CT, the authors said.
     
    The guidelines are published in Monday's edition of the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

    MORE Health ARTICLES

    Husky Energy Issues More Layoff Notices, Says Step Difficult But Necessary

    Husky Energy Issues More Layoff Notices, Says Step Difficult But Necessary
    Slumping world oil prices continue to hit Calgary’s energy industry hard as more layoffs have been announced.

    Husky Energy Issues More Layoff Notices, Says Step Difficult But Necessary

    Men And Women May Be Wired To Behave Differently: Study

    Men And Women May Be Wired To Behave Differently: Study
    Male and female behavioural differences correlate with their different brain networks, say researchers, including one of Indian origin.

    Men And Women May Be Wired To Behave Differently: Study

    Ottawa Proposes To Ban Plastic Microbeads In Facial Cleansers, Toothpaste

    Ottawa Proposes To Ban Plastic Microbeads In Facial Cleansers, Toothpaste
      Consumers have until March 10 to make their views known, as Environment Canada works out a timetable for eliminating the environmental pollutant.

    Ottawa Proposes To Ban Plastic Microbeads In Facial Cleansers, Toothpaste

    Wonder Food: Did You Know That Honey Can Save You From Blindness?

    Wonder Food: Did You Know That Honey Can Save You From Blindness?
    Researchers discovered a powerful link between Surgihoney -- a medicinal type of honey and the destruction of Fusarium -- a fungus that can cause blindness or even death.

    Wonder Food: Did You Know That Honey Can Save You From Blindness?

    Living With People They Bite, Zika Mosquitoes Hard To Fight

    Mosquitoes that spread the Zika virus are tough to fight because they breed close to people's homes: in the standing water of outside flower pots and dog bowls, and sometimes even in tub drains or other wet spots inside.

    Living With People They Bite, Zika Mosquitoes Hard To Fight

    Babies Sharing Beds With Mothers Are The Most Breastfed

    Babies Sharing Beds With Mothers Are The Most Breastfed
    Pregnant women who expressed a strong motivation to breastfeed were more likely to share the bed with their babies frequently, finds a new study.

    Babies Sharing Beds With Mothers Are The Most Breastfed