Low-dose CT lung screening: who it is for

A low-dose CT of the chest is the one lung test with real screening evidence behind it, for the right group of people. It uses a low dose of radiation, and it can catch lung cancer at a stage where it is more treatable.

The group it helps is clear: current and former smokers in the at-risk age band. The NHS lung screening programme offers it to people aged 55 to 74 who have ever smoked and who pass a risk assessment, and it is rolling out across the country. If you are eligible and invited, it is well worth taking up.

For people who have never smoked and are at low risk, the picture is different. Scan a low-risk lung and the test is more likely to turn up a small nodule that needs watching than a cancer, and those nodules mean follow-up scans and a stretch of uncertainty for something that usually proves harmless. The test earns its keep in people whose risk is high enough to tip the balance the other way.

With us, if you are at raised risk and want a low-dose CT sooner than an invitation, or you are not yet covered by the rollout in your area, we arrange it. We will tell you whether your own risk makes it a sensible test, or whether it is likely to create more questions than it answers.

Ready to start? Choose the check that fits your question and tell us a little about yourself. A doctor reviews it, arranges what you need, and explains what it means. Most of it is done online, with the clinic there if you would rather be seen.