If you’re a current or former smoker or have other risk factors for lung cancer, a low-dose lung CT screening (LDCT) may be right for you. Imaging Healthcare Specialists offers this screening procedure and it is fast, painless and completely non-invasive, and more effective than X-ray at detecting smaller, earlier stage cancers, sometimes before any symptoms appear.
A study on early detection of lung cancer found that the low-dose lung cancer screening test can reduce mortality for those at high risk. Screening for lung cancer may save your life.
A consultation with your doctor may be required for your lung screening to be covered by insurance. Ask your doctor if a lung screening program is right for you. If no problems are detected, your LDCT should be repeated in a year. After two years, your doctor may recommend a different frequency for LDCT screenings.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is a low-dose lung cancer screening (LDCT) important?
Low-dose lung cancer screening, referred to also as LDCT, helps to ensure that current or former smokers are protecting themselves against the risk of lung cancer.
How is a low-dose lung cancer screening performed?
To conduct an LDCT screening, patients lie flat on a table that slides into the center of the CT scanner. While the table moves through the scanner, images of the lungs are created.
What age should I get scanned?
It is wise for current or former smokers 50-80 years of age to get a low-dose cancer screening.
Isn’t a lung x-ray the same thing?
No, a CT scan provides far more detailed images and can detect smaller, earlier stage cancers than X-ray. In addition, the 20% reduced cancer deaths made possible by low-dose lung screening were from a clinical trial that compared CT screening with X-ray screening.
Who is eligible for an LDCT lung screening?
One or more of the following criteria will be considered when determining eligibility:
- Individuals between the ages of 50-80.
- Patients who have no signs of symptoms of lung cancer.
- Patients who smoked tobacco for 20-pack years or longer.
- Or individuals who have quit smoking within the last 15 years.
How long does the screening take?
A low-dose lung cancer screening is non-invasive and painless. The screening usually takes around 15 minutes.
What if the test finds something?
It is not uncommon for a LDCT to find a small nodule or mass in the lungs, especially in current or former smokers. Most nodules are not cancer, and could be the result of an old infection, scar tissue or another cause. Your doctor may want to monitor the nodule over time, or recommend another imaging test or biopsy.
How often should I have this test?
If no lung problems are detected, your LDCT should be repeated in one year. After two years, your doctor may recommend a different frequency of screening.
What IHS locations can I get a low-dose lung screening at?
We offer low-dose lung cancer screening at all our Imaging Healthcare Specialists locations.
In many cases, LDCT screening is covered by insurance. Please ask your insurance company if your plan covers you. If not, IHS offers a reasonably priced $199 cash payment option.
If you have a history of smoking, a low-dose CT scan may be for you. We offer lung cancer screenings at seven of our nine locations in the greater San Diego area.
Seeing the BIG PICTURE
Welcome to Imaging Healthcare Specialists (IHS), San Diego’s leader in outpatient radiology services. We have nine imaging centers and outpatient procedure centers serving the communities of San Diego from Oceanside to Chula Vista.
Over the past three decades, Imaging Healthcare Specialists has earned an outstanding reputation for the most advanced imaging technology, highly specialized expertise and exceptional customer service for physicians and patients in the San Diego area. But that’s only scratching the surface. What we offer is something rare among diagnostic imaging providers, and it’s something we call the Big Picture.