Question about lung cancer screening decision answered

Joshua Roth, PhD, MHA

CANCER DIGEST – May 14, 2014 – Two weeks ago lung cancer experts were left with more questions than answers when a Medicare advisory panel recommended against using CT scanning for lung cancer screening, citing not enough evidence. That  ran contrary to evidence of a large study showing such screening resulted in a 20 percent reduction in lung cancer deaths for people at high risk of the disease. Today a mathematical model of the screening program pegged the increased cost to Medicare at $9.3 billion over the next five years with approximately $5.6 billion more spent on low-dose CT imaging, $1.1 billion for diagnostic workups, and $2.6 billion more in cancer care expenditures.The study led by Dr. Joshua Roth of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, was summarized in a press release ahead of presentation at the upcoming American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago at the end of May.

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