CT scan procedure for lung cancer screening in asbestos-exposed workers

Our plain-English summary of CT scan procedure for lung cancer screening in asbestos-exposed workers, by M. Ollier, J.M. Garcier, G. Naughton, et al (Chest, 2014).

The study

• Authors: M. Ollier, J.M. Garcier, G. Naughton, A. Chamoux, B. Pereira, F. Dutheil
• Journal: Chest
• Published: 2014;146(2):e76-e77
• Type of article: Letter, Comment
• Cited by: 2 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

In plain English

This is a short letter to the editor, not a new study. The authors had earlier published a meta-analysis in CHEST on chest CT screening for lung cancer in asbestos-exposed workers. Here they wrote that the meta-analysis had left out one source of difference between studies: the CT scan procedures used. Their table of the seven included studies showed slice thicknesses of 5 mm in two studies and 10 mm in three. One study used 1-mm slices with 10-mm reconstruction intervals, and one did not report CT scan parameters. The authors cited earlier research reporting that thinner slices improved detection of lung nodules, and that reducing thickness below 3 mm mattered for detailed analysis of focal lung abnormalities. They noted that thinner slices may also raise false-positive results, and that those studies did not assess the clinical consequences of finding more small nodules. The authors concluded that CT procedures should be standardized in low-dose CT screening of asbestos-exposed workers. They wrote that a thin-slice study appears optimal, in addition to a low-dose protocol reconstructed through contiguous images.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Letter to the editor (correspondence) by the authors of an earlier systematic review and meta-analysis, commenting on that meta-analysis and tabulating the CT procedures of the studies it included; no new patient data
• Who was studied: The seven screening studies of asbestos-exposed workers included in the authors' 2014 meta-analysis (Clin 2009, Das 2007, Fasola 2007, Mastrangelo 2008, Roberts 2009, Tiitola 2002, Vierikko 2007). The table lists 972, 187, 1,045, 1,119, 516, 602 and 633 workers screened, respectively.
• Exposure: Occupational asbestos exposure, with workers screened by chest CT. The letter's focus is the CT technique (slice thickness, reconstruction interval, kV, mA, pitch). Fiber types are not given.
• Main results:
  • Slice thickness varied across the seven studies, and not all used thin slices.
  • In the authors' table, slice thickness was 5 mm in the Clin and Fasola studies and 10 mm in the Mastrangelo, Tiitola and Vierikko studies.
  • One study (Das et al) used a 1-mm slice thickness but with 10-mm reconstruction intervals.
  • One study (Roberts et al) did not report CT scan parameters.
  • In support of their argument, the authors cited earlier research (not their own analysis) indicating that slice thickness has demonstrated improved detection of pulmonary nodules, and that reducing slice thickness below 3 mm matters for detailed analysis of focal lung abnormalities.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors contended that CT scan procedures should be standardized in low-dose CT lung cancer screening of asbestos-exposed workers. They wrote that a thin-slice study appears to be the optimal procedure, in addition to the recommended low-dose protocol reconstructed through contiguous images.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The authors noted that the studies they cited on slice thickness did not evaluate the clinical consequences of detecting more small nodules.
  • The authors noted that thinner slices may also increase false-positive results.

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Lung cancer.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: CT Scan, Low-Dose CT Screening.

Related studies

• Chest CT scan screening for lung cancer in asbestos occupational exposure: a systematic review and meta-analysis — M. Ollier, A. Chamoux, et al. (2014)
• CT scan screening for lung cancer: risk factors for nodules and malignancy in a high-risk urban cohort — A.K. Greenberg, F. Lu, et al. (2012)
• CT scan screening is associated with increased distress among subjects of the APExS — C. Paris, M. Maurel, et al. (2010)
• Performance of chest radiograph and CT scan for lung cancer screening in asbestos-exposed workers — B. Clin, F. Morlais, et al. (2009)
• Chest CT scan findings in World Trade Center workers — R.E. de la Hoz, J. Weber, et al. (2019)
• Smoking, occupational risk factors, and bronchial tumor location: a possible impact for lung cancer computed tomography scan screening — M. Gonzalez, J.M. Vignaud, et al. (2012)

Browse more research in Chest, or return to medical research.