Lung cancer: prevention and detection update

Our plain-English summary of Lung cancer: prevention and detection update, by L.M. Potanovich (Seminars in Oncology Nursing, 1993).

The study

• Author: L.M. Potanovich
• Journal: Seminars in Oncology Nursing
• Published: 1993;9(3):174-9
• Type of article: Review
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

In plain English

This article, by a clinical research nurse, was a narrative update on the causes, prevention and early detection of lung cancer. It reported no original research. Most of it concerned cigarette smoking. Citing a Council on Scientific Affairs report, it said tobacco use accounts for 80% to 90% of lung cancer deaths worldwide. On asbestos, it stated that asbestos dust and fibers act synergistically with smoking in promoting lung cancer, with an average latency of 20 to 30 years from first exposure. Citing a 1989 article by Mossman and Gee, it described chrysotile's curly fibrils as having less tendency to cause lung cancer. It described the amphibole group (crocidolite, amosite, anthophyllite, tremolite and actinolite) as needle-like fibers with a higher incidence of disease, particularly in miners, millers and people working with building materials. It listed people exposed to occupational carcinogens, such as roofers, shipyard workers and miners, among high-risk groups. It said screening had not reduced lung cancer mortality. It also described the CARET vitamin trial, which included asbestos workers. The author concluded that health care professionals must focus on primary prevention.

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: narrative review (update article) summarizing published literature; no original data
• Who was studied: no study population; the article reviewed published work on lung cancer in general
• Exposure: Lung cancer risk factors in general: cigarette smoking (the main focus) and tobacco use, passive smoke, asbestos (chrysotile and the amphiboles crocidolite, amosite, anthophyllite, tremolite and actinolite), radon, and occupational arsenic, chromium, cadmium and nickel
• Main results:
  • The article stated that the average latency period for asbestos-related lung cancer is 20 to 30 years from initial exposure. No source is cited for this statement.
  • Citing Mossman and Gee, the article described chrysotile fibers as having less tendency to cause lung cancer because of their curly shape.
  • Citing the same source, the article described amphibole fibers as needle-like and able to penetrate deeper into the lung. It associated them with a higher incidence of disease, particularly in miners, millers and persons working with building materials.
  • The article stated that screening and early detection had not reduced lung cancer mortality, even in high-risk individuals. It listed those exposed to occupational carcinogens among the high-risk individuals, giving roofers, shipyard workers and miners as examples.
  • The article described the CARET chemoprevention trial (Omenn and colleagues). The trial enrolled smokers and also asbestos workers aged 45 to 69 who had a significant exposure history or chest x-ray evidence of exposure. The article reported a projected maximal effect of a 33% decrease in lung cancer incidence; this is a projection, not a trial result.
  • Citing the Council of Scientific Affairs, the article stated that tobacco use accounts for 80% to 90% of lung cancer deaths worldwide.
• The authors' conclusion: The author concluded that many detection and prevention studies were at an early phase. The author also concluded that health care professionals must focus on primary prevention, chiefly reducing smoking.

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: Lung Cancer.

Related studies

• 'Natural' cancer prevention trial halted — K. Peterson (1996)
• Research cost analyses to aid in decision making in the conduct of a large prevention trial, CARET. Carotene and Retinol Efficacy Trial — M.D. Thornquist, N. Urban, et al. (1993)
• Biomarker assessments in asbestos-exposed workers as indicators for selective prevention of mesothelioma or bronchogenic carcinoma: rationale and practical implementations — E. Pluygers, P. Baldewyns, et al. (1992)
• Programmed health surveillance and detection of emerging diseases in occupational health: contribution of the French national occupational disease surveillance and prevention network (RNV3P) — V. Bonneterre, L. Faisandier, et al. (2010)
• Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (FIOH): prevention and detection of asbestos-related diseases, 1987-2005 — M.S. Huuskonen, J. Rantanen (2006)
• The role of intervention studies in ascertaining the contribution of dietary factors in lung cancer. The Seattle chemoprevention trial of retinoids in asbestos-exposed workers — G.S. Omenn, G.E. Goodman, et al. (1988)

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