Lung cancer kills 150,000 in the US each year — but its screening is avoided
PULL QUOTE: Lung cancer deaths exceed those from breast, colon, pancreas and prostate cancer combined. There are very compelling reasons to get screened New York — Sometimes you just do not want to know, even when your life may hang in the balance. A new study has found that fewer than 2% of heavy smokers in the US get recommended lung cancer screenings, an imaging test that can catch tumours when they are small and potentially curable. The numbers fall far short of screening for other types of cancer, including mammograms and colonoscopies — both procedures that are much more uncomfortable than the CT scan used to detect tiny tumours in the lungs. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the US, killing an estimated 150,000 Americans each year. For the past five years, such groups as the US Preventive Services Task Force and the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) have urged people aged 55 or older, who have smoked a pack a day (or the equivalent) for three deca...
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