The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) is lauding the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) decision to provide coverage for annual lung cancer screening with low-dose CT for those at highest risk for lung cancer.
The final decision memo states that there is sufficient evidence to warrant annual lung cancer screening for patients most at risk for developing lung cancer, ASTRO said. Eligible patients are between the ages of 55 and 77, show no signs or symptoms of lung disease, have a smoking history of at least 30 pack-years, and are a current smoker or have quit within the past 15 years.
"This highly effective, annual screening is a critical and powerful tool that will enable us to diagnose patients earlier when treatments are most effective, and it will fortify our efforts to battle this destructive disease," ASTRO said.
![Axial images from unenhanced calcium score cardiac CT (left) and curved planar reformation images from CT angiography (right) show that higher long-term exposure to air pollution is associated with greater coronary artery calcium and more obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). Top row: Images in a 68-year-old male patient with higher 10-year mean ambient air pollution exposure (7.9 μg/m3 for particulate matter measuring ≤2.5 μm in diameter [PM2.5] and 17.4 parts per billion [ppb] for NO2) with extensive CAD (coronary artery calcium score [CACS] >1,000 and obstructive CAD [≥70% diameter stenosis]). Bottom row: Images in a 57-year-old female patient with lower 10-year mean ambient air pollution exposure (6.3 μg/m3 for PM2.5 and 4.6 ppb for NO2) with no CAD (CACS = 0 and no obstructive stenosis).](https://img.auntminnie.com/mindful/smg/workspaces/default/uploads/2026/06/hanneman.r6SMLzkezo.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=2&fit=crop&h=167&q=70&w=250)
