Screening for lung cancer: New horizons?
Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the world. At present, the only high rate of cure therapy is surgical resection at early stage of disease. Early detection could potentially decrease lung cancer mortality suggesting that this cancer should be a good candidate for screening. Results of trials involving chest X-ray, sputum cytology and low-dose computed tomography (CT) are discussed here. The latter tool offers advantages over chest X-ray, but final results from controlled well conducted trials are necessary before the real utility of CT mass screening can be determined. Further approaches to secondary prevention such as screening with positron emission tomography (PET), autofluorescence bronchoscopy and biomarkers hold great promise for the future.
Rossi
Antonio
A
Unità Operativa di Oncologia Medica, Azienda Ospedaliera "S.G. Moscati", Contrada Amoretta, Città Ospedaliera, 83100 Avellino, Italy. arossi_it@yahoo.it
Maione
Paolo
P
Colantuoni
Giuseppe
G
Gaizo
Filomena Del
FD
Guerriero
Ciro
C
Nicolella
Dario
D
Ferrara
Carmine
C
Gridelli
Cesare
C
D000367:Age Factors; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood; D001999:Bronchoscopy; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000401:mortality; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D015983:Selection Bias; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects; D013183:Sputum / Q000166:cytology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor