Mortality in a Diverse, Real-World Lung Cancer Screening Cohort.

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Public Health
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Lung cancer screening (LCS) is recommended for individuals with significant smoking history.
• Real-world LCS populations may differ from clinical trial participants in health status.
• Understanding mortality in diverse LCS populations is crucial for implementation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate short-term mortality rates in a diverse, real-world population undergoing lung cancer screening.
• To identify factors associated with mortality in individuals eligible for LCS.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective observational cohort study of 1598 patients undergoing LCS.
• Data collected on demographics, comorbidities (Charlson index), smoking status, and mortality.
• Cox proportional hazard ratios used to analyze mortality risk.

Main Results:

• Mean age 62 years, 43% female, 45% Black, 18% Hispanic; 80% had moderate to severe comorbidity.
• 91% were current smokers; 6% died during a median follow-up of 31.3 months.
• Mortality significantly associated with age (HR 1.06), but not sex, race, comorbidity, or smoking status.

Conclusions:

• Short-term mortality is low in a diverse, real-world LCS population.
• This finding supports the potential benefit of LCS for early lung cancer detection in broader populations.
• Screening may be beneficial despite substantial comorbidity burden.