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The American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) has launched a Lung Cancer Screening Calculator to help individuals determine whether or not they should seek diagnostic screening.
The tool is especially relevant given that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced on February 5, 2015 that Medicare will now cover an annual CT lung cancer screening for patients that meet certain criteria. AATS was very involved in the process of getting CMS to approve such screenings.
Covered individuals must:
** Be between ages 55 and 77, who are currently smokers or quit within the last 15 years.
** Have a tobacco smoking history of at least 30 “pack years” (an average of one pack a day for 30 years).
** Receive a written order from a physician or a qualified non-physician practitioner.
The AATS Writing Group for Lung Cancer Screening and Surveillance under co-chairs Drs. Francine L. Jacobson and Michael T. Jaklitsch (Brigham and Women’s Hospital) was instrumental in developing this diagnostic tool.
The Group has identified other high-risk groups, including people between 54 and 77 who:
** Are lung cancer survivors.
** Have 20 “pack years” of smoking plus an additional factor that places their lung cancer risk at five percent over the next five years.
Lung cancer is the third most common cancer and a leading cause of US cancer deaths.
Individuals can use the calculator online to determine whether or not they should pursue a CT screening. The page allows them to print out the results for discussion with their doctor, as well as locate a screening facility near their home.
The American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) has launched a Lung Cancer Screening Calculator to help individuals determine whether or not they should seek diagnostic screening.
The tool is especially relevant given that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced on February 5, 2015 that Medicare will now cover an annual CT lung cancer screening for patients that meet certain criteria. AATS was very involved in the process of getting CMS to approve such screenings.
Covered individuals must:
** Be between ages 55 and 77, who are currently smokers or quit within the last 15 years.
** Have a tobacco smoking history of at least 30 “pack years” (an average of one pack a day for 30 years).
** Receive a written order from a physician or a qualified non-physician practitioner.
The AATS Writing Group for Lung Cancer Screening and Surveillance under co-chairs Drs. Francine L. Jacobson and Michael T. Jaklitsch (Brigham and Women’s Hospital) was instrumental in developing this diagnostic tool.
The Group has identified other high-risk groups, including people between 54 and 77 who:
** Are lung cancer survivors.
** Have 20 “pack years” of smoking plus an additional factor that places their lung cancer risk at five percent over the next five years.
Lung cancer is the third most common cancer and a leading cause of US cancer deaths.
Individuals can use the calculator online to determine whether or not they should pursue a CT screening. The page allows them to print out the results for discussion with their doctor, as well as locate a screening facility near their home.
The American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) has launched a Lung Cancer Screening Calculator to help individuals determine whether or not they should seek diagnostic screening.
The tool is especially relevant given that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced on February 5, 2015 that Medicare will now cover an annual CT lung cancer screening for patients that meet certain criteria. AATS was very involved in the process of getting CMS to approve such screenings.
Covered individuals must:
** Be between ages 55 and 77, who are currently smokers or quit within the last 15 years.
** Have a tobacco smoking history of at least 30 “pack years” (an average of one pack a day for 30 years).
** Receive a written order from a physician or a qualified non-physician practitioner.
The AATS Writing Group for Lung Cancer Screening and Surveillance under co-chairs Drs. Francine L. Jacobson and Michael T. Jaklitsch (Brigham and Women’s Hospital) was instrumental in developing this diagnostic tool.
The Group has identified other high-risk groups, including people between 54 and 77 who:
** Are lung cancer survivors.
** Have 20 “pack years” of smoking plus an additional factor that places their lung cancer risk at five percent over the next five years.
Lung cancer is the third most common cancer and a leading cause of US cancer deaths.
Individuals can use the calculator online to determine whether or not they should pursue a CT screening. The page allows them to print out the results for discussion with their doctor, as well as locate a screening facility near their home.