Treatment introduction
The 5-year survival rate for lung cancer patients in Europe and the United States is approximately 8%-16% compared to around 16% in Taiwan. By the time patients are diagnosed with lung cancer and after cancer staging is completed, more than half are already in the final stage of this disease. Therefore, it is important to work towards finding an appropriate yet effective way for the early detection of this disease.
Due to chest x-rays low degree of sensitivity in detecting nodules in the lung, the research results of using this method to detect this disease has been less than ideal. In addition, x-ray examinations were not able to reduce the mortality rate of lung cancer patients. Currently, according to research, a low dose CT scan is the most effective tool in the screening and early detection of lung cancer.
Low dose CT scan technology is one type of examination tool. In comparison with traditional chest imaging, its main purpose is to screen for small nodules in the lung; however, it is not particularly sensitive to the imaging of the thorax, and soft tissues, which will reduce the radiation dosage. In general, the radiation dosage compared to traditional imaging is approximately 5-7 mSv (1/6-1/10), which is the dosage for around 2-3 sheets of x-ray images. Despite the lower dosage amount, the effectiveness in detecting small nodules in the lung is comparable to traditional CT scans. With our addition of the 640-slice Toshiba Aquilion ONE, the radiation dosages for such scans are even lower.