The Medical Imaging & Technology Alliance (MITA) today lauded the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) for endorsing the United States Preventive Services Task Force's (USPSTF) draft recommendation for annual CT scans for high-risk smokers.

"The chorus of medical professional societies recognizing the importance of LDCT for at-risk individuals just grew louder with the AATS' endorsement," Gail Rodriguez, executive director of MITA, said in a statement. "With LDCT imaging, high-risk lung cancer patients will be able to reap the benefits of early detection. It is now critical that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) break down access barriers to this proven, life-saving diagnostic tool and reduce these needless deaths."

The USPSTF recommendation targets high-risk current or former smokers 55 to 80 years of age who have smoked the equivalent of a pack a day for 30 years.
The draft recommendation came at the heels of the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) study — the most expensive screening study ever proposed — conducted by the American College of Radiology Imaging Network (ACRIN).

According to the data gleaned from the study, LDCT imaging significantly reduced lung cancer deaths among high-risk patients and has the potential to prevent 12,000 lung cancer deaths each year in the United States.

The AATS joins the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) who have endorsed LDCT for high-risk individuals, along with private payers including WellPoint, Blue Cross Blue Shield affiliates and Anthem affiliates, which now include the scans as a covered benefit.

Furthermore, federal agencies including the Department of Defense (DoD), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of Energy (DoE) have begun phased implementation of LDCT.

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