Longitudinal Care Ensures Early Detection of Recurrent and Subsequent Lung Cancers at Hackensack University Medical Center

CT Screening program follows lung cancer patients with semiannual or annual screenings to address increased cancer risks following primary cancer

Because recurring risk goes down over time, but risk of a new cancer forming rises each year following an initial lung cancer, Hackensack University Medical Center provides long-term screening for patients following lung cancer treatment.

In the first five years following lung cancer treatment, physicians are especially concerned about recurrence. CT scans, initially every six months and then yearly over the course of the first five years, provide earlier detection if a recurrence happens, and equally important can detect a new lung cancer at an early stage, allowing physicians to spare lung tissue in their treatment.

After five years with no recurrence, a patient is considered cured of the initial cancer; however, the risk of a new cancer forming in either lung continues to increase 2% cumulatively each year. Ten years following the first cancer, for example, the risk of a second cancer forming reaches 20%. So a lifelong screening program incorporating annual CT scans helps ensure any new cancers are caught early when most treatable.

“With screening, if we pick up a second or third cancer, we almost always detect it early so we have a better chance of cure,” Hackensack University Medical Center thoracic surgeon Nabil P. Rizk, M.D., said.

Hackensack University Medical Center provides a full range of minimally invasive diagnostic and treatment options, including Ion bronchoscopy and robotic surgery, that ensure accurate diagnosis and preserve as much healthy lung tissue as possible during initial and recurring treatments for the best long-term prognosis possible.

Learn more about innovative pulmonology and thoracic surgery care at Hackensack University Medical Center.