Lung Cancer Screening and USPSTF Recommendations

Lung cancer remains the leading cause of death from cancer.¹ For persons at high risk, low-dose computed topography screening effectively identifies early-stage lung cancer and can reduce lung cancer mortality.² In 2021, the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) broadened recommended lung cancer screening (LCS) guidelines to include adults aged 50 to 79 years with a cigarette smoking history of 20 or more years who are current or recent (within 15 years) smokers.³ Studies of LCS prevalence have examined data from either the population who meet all USPSTF criteria⁴ or selected LCS registries.⁵ In other contexts, such as breast cancer, screening outside USPSTF recommendations is common, and those choosing screening outside recommendations are often at considerably higher risk.⁶ Using nationally representative data, we investigated the prevalence of LCS by eligibility with respect to USPSTF criteria, and we compared those choosing screening by eligibility.

Darden, M. E., & Hoagland, A. (2025). Lung Cancer Screening and USPSTF Recommendations. JAMA Network Open, 8(2), e2458916-e2458916.