Lung Cancer Screening Practices in North Carolina CT Facilities.
BACKGROUND
The burden of lung cancer in the United States is staggering, with more Americans dying from lung cancer than the next four most common cancers combined. With endorsement of lung cancer screening by the United States Preventive Services Task Force and reimbursement by CMS, the number screened for lung cancer with low-dose CT (LDCT) is anticipated to rise in the near future.


METHODS
In 2015, we conducted a cross-sectional study of mailed surveys to 112 ACR CT facilities across North Carolina to examine recommended guidelines for lung cancer screening, referral patterns, and patient tracking methods. We describe the survey results and compare findings with surveys of academic medical centers.


RESULTS
Among 48 respondents (response rate = 42.9%), 54.2% offer lung cancer screening with LDCT (93.1% community and 6.9% academic settings); of these, 70.8% use ACR/CMS guidelines. In lung cancer screening facilities, reported patient volumes are low (average eight patients screened per month, range: 0-30) and patient tracking occurs in 72% of facilities.


CONCLUSIONS
Among our predominately community-based sample of facilities, we found variation in lung cancer screening guideline usage, number of patients screened, and tracking methods.
Department of Radiology, The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina; Department of Epidemiology, The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Electronic address: Louise_Henderson@med.unc.edu.
Louise M
LM
Henderson
Department of Radiology, The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Laura M
LM
Jones
Department of Radiology, The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Mary W
MW
Marsh
Department of Radiology, The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Thad
T
Benefield
Department of Medicine, The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
M Patricia
MP
Rivera
Department of Radiology, The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Paul L
PL
Molina
D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D009657:North Carolina / Q000453:epidemiology; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
Lung cancer; guidelines; screening; survey