Life-Saving Screening Expands to Reach More Americans

Today, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) published its final recommendation for low dose CT lung cancer screening, which expands screening recommendations by lowering the age minimum to 50 years and lowering the smoking history to 20-pack years. We commend the USPSTF for bringing life-saving screening to more at risk Americans.

In their prior recommendation, the USPSTF had a higher age threshold for screening eligibility and a higher smoking history. By lowering both criteria, screening will expand the reach to additional patients at risk for lung cancer, and could effectively save as many as 60,000 people annually, including more of the vulnerable and underserved.

We applaud USPSTF’s final lung cancer screening recommendation, which is similar to current NCCN Guidelines for screening. However, if we truly want to remove barriers to access to this preventive service, there is more work ahead.

GO2 for Lung Cancer continues to urge the USPSTF to refine their recommendation and remove the arbitrary screening limitations that would halt screening for individuals who 1) quit smoking more than 15 years ago and/or 2) had passed the age of 80. Removing these screening eligibility requirements would further bring the USPSTF recommendation in line with the NCCN Guidelines and reach an additional at-risk population with this life-saving resource.

Lung cancer remains the highest among the cancer deaths annually worldwide and in the United States. More than 131,880 Americans will die from lung cancer in 2021. Low dose CT screening is a life-saving benefit for early detection and treatment, which is why GO2 for Lung Cancer has made lung cancer screening central to our vision of doubling survival by 2025. Our efforts to instill responsible screening and care in a growing network of dedicated community hospitals across the country remains our highest priority.

We are committed to saving lives through improved screening. To learn more about screening or to find out if you are at risk, please visit our website or call our HelpLine at 1-800-298-2436.  Then, talk with your doctor about the 2021 USPSTF expanded preventive service and whether lung cancer screening is right for you.