Tag: WCLC

Expanding CT Lung Screening at WCLC 2026

Posted on by Brian Casey

Low-dose CT lung cancer screening appears set to be the next major population-based cancer screening exam. But much work remains to make LDCT screening available to as many eligible people as possible while optimizing scanning protocols.

That’s according to sessions at IASLC’s World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC 2026), which just wrapped up in Seoul, South Korea. 

  • WCLC 2026 sessions ranged from expanding scanning to people at high risk but without smoking histories to using AI to not only detect and characterize lung nodules but to predict future cancer risk.

Some of the key findings from WCLC 2026 included…

  • Australia started its national LDCT screening program in 2025, and researchers expect a national-level stage shift to earlier diagnosis. At a 50% participation rate, stage I diagnoses should grow from 32% currently to 42% for women and 43% for men. 
  • The Ready to Screen (R2S) trial in Australia found that of 1.7k eligible screening candidates surveyed, 85% “definitely” intended to get screened and 26% said they had already received an LDCT scan. 
  • Taiwan’s national screening program showed that – at least in East Asia – people with a family history of lung cancer should be screened. Of 2.8k cancers detected, there was a 74% higher detection rate in those with family histories versus smoking histories (18 vs. 10 cancers per 1k screened), with more early-stage cancers detected (92% vs. 83%).
  • An LDCT screening program in China screened 6.7k people – including those with risk factors besides smoking – finding a 56% lung cancer mortality reduction.  
  • French clinicians successfully added smoking cessation therapy to their LDCT program, with 88% screening attendance and participants 44% less likely to smoke.
  • MIT’s Sybil AI algorithm was more accurate than Lung-RADS in predicting one-year cancer risk from suspicious nodules, with higher AUC when applied to two large lung screening trials (NLST and P-IELCAP). 
  • Researchers found that applying Sybil to coronary artery calcium scans could also predict lung cancer risk for both smokers and non-smokers over a 15-year follow-up period.
  • Researchers used Softek Illuminate’s Illuminate AI software for identifying incidental pulmonary nodules as a complement to an LDCT screening program, finding that the algorithm discovered more lung cancer cases than conventional screening. 

The Takeaway

This week’s WCLC 2026 sessions point out the rapid progress being made around the world in expanding access to LDCT lung cancer screening – as well as the role that AI-based software tools can play in making screening more effective and more widely accessible. 

CT Lung Screening News from WCLC 2025

Posted on by Brian Casey

The World Conference on Lung Cancer wrapped up this week in Barcelona, and CT lung cancer screening was a highlighted topic, as it was at WCLC 2024 in San Diego.

The last year has seen significant global progress toward new population-based lung screening programs, and sessions at WCLC 2025 highlighted the advances being made… 

  • A screening program serving Kentucky and Indiana since 2013 has seen a 30-percentage-point decline in late-stage lung cancer diagnoses – over 3.5X faster than national trends – with far higher uptake than national averages (52% vs. 16%).
  • In the European 4-IN-THE-LUNG-RUN trial, AI had a negative predictive value similar to radiologists (98% vs. 97%) in analyzing 2.2k CT lung screen exams, indicating its potential as a first reader.
  • Another 4-IN-THE-LUNG-RUN study of 2.6k individuals revealed that AI had a 2.5% incidental findings rate, with none having acute consequences after a year.
  • The USPSTF’s 2021 guideline expansion may have reduced the number of at-risk individuals eligible for screening. A California analysis of 11.7k lung cancer patients found 8.8% fewer patients were eligible.
  • Researchers from Illinois found that basing screening eligibility on a 20-year smoking history rather than USPSTF 2021’s 20-pack-year threshold would capture more eligible individuals (70% vs. 65%), especially racial minorities.
  • A screening program at a VA healthcare system in Northern California achieved a 94% adherence rate for 3.9k military veterans, with 67% of cancers diagnosed at early stages.
  • U.S. military veterans had much higher screening rates (50% vs. 29%) in an analysis of 413.6k cancer survivors. Among women, 71% were up to date on mammography screening but only 25% were current for lung screens. 
  • Researchers used Qure.ai’s algorithm to detect malignant pulmonary nodules on 198k routine chest X-rays in a tuberculosis screening program.
  • Asian American women are at higher risk of lung cancer – even if they don’t smoke – and a session explored whether they should be screened.
  • A Stanford University program using electronic alerts to primary care physicians boosted screening compliance after one year (16% vs. 8.9%).
  • Attending lung screening didn’t make people feel they had a “license to smoke” in a U.K. study of 87.8k people.
  • Italian researchers tested Coreline Soft’s AVIEW AI solution as a first reader for screening.

The Takeaway

Findings from this week’s WCLC 2025 conference show both the challenges and opportunities in CT lung cancer screening. Researchers around the world are demonstrating that with hard work, dedication, and persistence, lung screening can become an effective, life-saving exam.

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