Diagnosing lung cancer at an early stage with low-dose computed tomography significantly improves long-term survival, according to a large-scale study by Mount Sinai School of Medicine researchers published in the journal Radiology.

More than half of lung cancer patients die within a year of diagnosis, making it the leading cause of cancer death, as symptoms are often too late. Only 16% of lung cancers are diagnosed at an early stage. Although treatments for advanced cancers with targeted therapy and immunotherapy have advanced greatly, the best tool against lung cancer deaths is early diagnosis before symptoms appear, the study authors point out.

In the research, 1,257 participants who were diagnosed with lung cancer were studied and their survival rates were examined over a period of 20 years. Of these patients, 81% had stage I disease, meaning a very small tumor that has not spread to the lymph nodes. Their long-term survival rate was 87%. If the diagnosis was made at the earliest stage I the long-term survival would be 95%.

US Preventive Services Task Force recommends annual screening with low-dose CT for lung cancer in adults aged 50-80 who have a 20-year smoking history (ie, smoking a pack per day for 20 years) and are current smokers or have stopped smoking in the past 15 years .