Summary
Lung cancer screening saves lives by finding the cancer early, when it is easier to treat. But under current U.S. guidelines, only people who smoke or used to smoke can get yearly screening with a low-dose CT scan. Health advocates say that rule leaves out too many people.
Who gets left out?
Lung cancer kills about 125,000 Americans every year. Nadia Litterman, who leads the Susan Wojcicki Foundation, told NPR that roughly half of the people diagnosed with lung cancer don’t qualify for screening.
That’s because smoking isn’t the only cause of lung cancer. Family history, radon and chemical exposures in the environment can also raise a person’s risk. Lung cancer is rising among people who have never smoked. Pope Leo XIV, who was recently diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma, is one of them. Adenocarcinoma is the most common type of lung cancer in people who don’t smoke.
What do advocates want?
Advocates want screening guidelines to consider more risk factors than smoking alone. Dr. Bryant Lin, a Stanford Medicine professor who is himself living with stage 4 lung cancer, says experts can’t test everyone, but they can figure out who is at higher risk.
He points to Taiwan, where screening people who don’t smoke has helped lower lung cancer deaths. Until simpler tests, such as blood tests, are ready, he says CT scans for non-smokers with a family history of lung cancer could help catch the disease earlier.
Fighting stigma
Advocates also say the idea that only smokers get lung cancer adds to stigma. And even among people who do qualify for screening, fewer than 20% get screened.
What can you do?
Anyone with lungs can get lung cancer. Learn your risk factors and talk to your doctor about screening. If you have symptoms such as a cough that won’t go away, ask about imaging, whether or not you have ever smoked.
