How one hospital more than doubled its lung cancer screening rate
One New York organization recently detailed how it was able to more than double the number of eligible patients who complete lung cancer screenings.
Over a decade after the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommended lung cancer screening (LCS) in high-risk individuals via low-dose CT scans, utilization of the exam has continued to lag. Less than 20% of eligible patients in the U.S. adhere to LCS recommendations, despite numerous studies highlighting the exam’s ability to spot cancer at its earliest stages.
A group of providers from the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) were able to overcome this statistic, increasing their organization’s LCS rates from 33% in 2022 to 72% in 2025, sharing their findings in the New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst.
“Our biggest success was not only screening a high percentage of eligible patients, but also enrolling those patients in the comprehensive program to ensure they receive the necessary annual follow-up screenings,” noted lead author Robert Fortuna, MD, MPH, professor of primary care and pediatrics at URMC.
Fortuna and a group of multidisciplinary experts, including primary care physicians, radiologists, pulmonologists, thoracic surgeons and advanced practitioners, collaborated in 2022 to develop an initiative targeted at increasing LCS rates. Designed to identify more patients who met eligibility criteria, the system was created using evidenced-based practices and included four main approaches:
Educational outreach regarding eligibility criteria.
Integrating population-based health initiatives into primary care.
A coordinated recall process among providers and patients to ensure appropriate follow-up for abnormal results and future screening adherence.
A centralized program that provides consultative support.
Within this system, success hinged on a defined patient registry, electronic health record prompts, patient navigators and staff dedicated to patient follow-up and outreach. The group’s efforts were successful, as screening rates more than doubled after the system was implemented in 2023. What’s more, between 2023 and 2024, the higher screening adherence resulted in providers identifying 63 new cases of lung cancer, 78% of which were diagnosed at early stages.
“Aligning our lung cancer screening program with our broader population health initiatives allowed us to leverage familiar workflows and broadened our reach. Throughout the country, health systems are pursuing similar goals and most have some sort of population health structure in place,” said Fortuna. “My hope is that by sharing our success, others will be able to adopt and build upon what we’re doing to screen more patients and save more lives nationwide.”
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In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.