According to the CDC, People who smoke cigarettes are 15 to 30 times more likely to get or die from lung cancer than people who don’t smoke. Now is the perfect time to talk with your patients about how they can lower their lung cancer risk.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends yearly lung cancer screening with low-dose computed tomography (CT scan) for people who:
- Have a 20 pack-year or more smoking history, and
- Smoke now or have quit within the past 15 years, and
- Are between 50 and 80 years old.
See Medicare patients? If you accept assignment, they pay nothing for counseling to prevent tobacco use and lung cancer screening with low dose computed tomography. Find out when your patient is eligible for these services here. (PDF).
Get more valuable information for your patients:
- CDC Lung Cancer Awareness webpage
- Tobacco Use Disparities (PDF) data snapshot, August 2022
- Counseling to prevent tobacco use & tobacco-caused disease and lung cancer screenings