Smokers who receive CT scans are less likely to light up

Seeing is believing—at least when it comes to smokers who undergo CT scans of their lungs. Those who do are more likely to quit, according to research from a number of U.K. universities.

The study, a collaboration between Cardiff University and University of Liverpool, King's College London and Queen Mary University, was published in the July issue of Thorax.

The team randomized 4,055 individuals between 50 and 75 years old to CT screening or control. At two weeks, the smoking cessation rates were 5 percent for the control and 10 percent for those who were scanned. At two years, the rates were 10 percent and 15 percent, respectively.

“CT lung cancer screening for high-risk participants offers a teachable moment for smoking cessation, especially among those who receive a positive scan result,” wrote Kate Brain, with Cardiff University’s division of population medicine. “Further behavioral research is needed to evaluate optimal strategies for integrating smoking cessation intervention with stratified lung cancer screening.”

The team notes that participation in the study was voluntary, which provided smokers who were self-selected and may already have considered quitting. Still, those who did participate and stop smoking noted the impact of the CT scan.

“Implementation of a U.K. national lung cancer screening program for high-risk groups offers opportunities for smoking cessation at multiple points in the screening process, from the initial screening invitation to CT scanning and disclosure of results,” Brain et al. wrote.