Study: Lung CT Best for Highest-Risk Group

Low-dose CT scans could be most useful as a lung-cancer screening test if given only to those with the very highest risk, a new study suggests. The study suggests a way to further refine criteria for who should get the scans. Chest CT finds many lung cancers but also causes many false alarms. Researchers took a closer look at results from the National Lung Cancer Screening Trial. That study reported results in 2011. It found that chest CT screening of a high-risk group could reduce lung cancer deaths 20%. Scans were given to heavy smokers, ages 55 through 74 years. The study also included former heavy smokers who had quit no more than 15 years earlier. The new study further divided people into risk groups based on how much they smoked, family history of lung cancer and other factors.