Dear CT Insider,
There may be more to a lung nodule than meets the eye, say researchers from the U.S. National Cancer Institute and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
In a secondary analysis of data from the National Lung Screening Trial, researchers found that nodules initially flagged as false positives on CT lung screening exams were associated with increased lung cancer risk up to 12 years after initial baseline screening. Read about the implications of these findings in this edition's CT Insider Exclusive.
CT lung cancer screening was also a key topic at the recent RSNA 2019 meeting in Chicago. A radiologist from Massachusetts General Hospital reported that participation rates for the screening exam in the U.S. at last appear to be on the upswing. A separate presentation at the conference highlighted the need for improvements in the quality of online information about CT lung screening as patient engagement with the exam continues to grow.
Another critical issue at RSNA 2019 was the role of CT in the diagnosis of electronic cigarette, or vaping, product-use associated lung injury (EVALI). A panel of experts on the subject discussed common imaging findings that helped them characterize the vaping epidemic and addressed potential long-term consequences of EVALI.
Several other presentations at RSNA 2019 underscored the value of CT in a wide range of clinical settings:
- A group from Germany demonstrated the capacity of coronary CT angiography combined with fractional flow reserve CT analysis to bolster treatment decision-making for patients with coronary artery disease.
- CT helped track the recent surge in electric scooter-related injuries in major U.S. cities.
- A team from Duke University used micro-CT to examine the internal features and material composition of manikins that clinicians purportedly used to teach medical anatomy in the 17th century.
From the use of CT to uncover calcified plaques in mummies to a trend toward increasing reliance on CT angiography for carotid artery stenosis, news and stories relevant to the field abound. Stay on top of all the latest by heading over to the CT Community at AuntMinnie.com.
