Medpage Today: Non-Heavy Smokers Still at High Risk of Lung Cancer
Older smokers not subject to routine low-dose computed tomography (CT) screening were found to have 10 times the risk of lung cancer compared to never smokers, a cohort study found.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) does not recommend annual lung cancer screening for former smokers age 50-80 years with 20 or more pack-years of smoking who quit 15 or more years ago or current smokers with less than 20 pack-years of smoking.
In the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS), however, current non-heavy smokers with less than 20 pack-years of smoking had a significantly higher incidence of lung cancer over a median 13.3 years of follow-up (5.0% vs 0.5% for never smokers, adjusted HR 10.06, 95% CI 3.41-29.70), reported Ali Ahmed, MD, from the VA Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and colleagues.
