North Broward Radiologists, a diagnostic imaging services provider in South Florida, will begin providing low-dose CT lung cancer screenings for high-risk patients. The Affordable Care Act guarantees coverage of annual screenings for individuals with a 30-year pack history, or a 20-year pack history and an additional risk factor such as emphysema. A pack-year is defined as smoking one pack per day per year.
“Mandated insurance coverage of lung cancer screenings for patients classified as ‘high risk’ has the potential to save thousands of lives nationwide,” said Richard Spira, MD. “Using the latest technology, we can now detect lung cancer at a very early stage, which will greatly increase survival rates of individuals afflicted with lung cancer.”
A 2011 study in the New England Journal of Medicine documented a 20% drop in the risk of death from lung cancer for patients who received low-dose CT scans as opposed to a traditional chest x-ray. North Broward Radiologists follows the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) model and adheres to the protocols set by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) guidelines. Screenings are also available for patients without insurance at a rate of $99. For more information, visit North Broward Radiologists.
