Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41838308›Full record

ArticleInsights into imaging2026

CT acquisition protocols in lung cancer screening: implications for guideline development from a worldwide survey.

Mathis Franz Georg Konrad, Emily Nischwitz, Joanna Chorostowska-Wynimko, Anna Kerpel-Fronius, Viktoria Palm, Joanna Moes-Sosnowska, Mariusz Adamek, Gudrun Zahlmann, Aad van der Lugt, Jens Vogel-Claussen and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Insights into imaging, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Mathis Franz Georg KonradDepartment of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology (DIR), Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany. mathis.konrad@med.uni-heidelberg.de.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7043-9487
Emily NischwitzDepartment of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology (DIR), Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany.
Joanna Chorostowska-WynimkoDepartment of Genetics and Clinical Immunology, National Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases, Warsaw, Poland.
Anna Kerpel-FroniusDepartment of Radiology, National Korányi Institute for Pulmonology, Budapest, Hungary.
Viktoria PalmDepartment of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology (DIR), Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany.
Joanna Moes-SosnowskaDepartment of Genetics and Clinical Immunology, National Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases, Warsaw, Poland.
Mariusz AdamekDepartment of Thoracic Surgery, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland.
Gudrun ZahlmannQuantitative Medical Imaging Coalition, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Aad van der LugtDepartment of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Erasmus MC - University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Jens Vogel-ClaussenDepartment of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
Helmut ProschDepartment of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
Hans-Ulrich KauczorDepartment of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology (DIR), Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTo assess the currently applied CT image acquisition protocols in lung cancer screening (LCS) and thereby fill a knowledge gap to support guideline development. MATERIALS AND

methodsThrough worldwide distribution of an online survey, data on institutional and technical factors regarding CT acquisition protocols in LCS were collected between 06/2024 and 09/2025 on behalf of the SOLACE (Strengthening the screening of lung cancer in Europe) consortium.

resultsGlobal responses were received from 71 LCS institutions across 29 countries (all continents). Responsibility for CT protocol establishment and modification varied among professions (radiologists, radiographers, medical physicists, and manufacturer personnel). Protocol establishment was dominated by radiologists (64 of 115), with only one-third of institutions involving multiple professions. Technical questions were partially answered. Automatic exposure control was implemented in 88% of centers (43 of 49). Reconstructed slice thickness ranged from 0.625 to 1.5 mm, with 1.0 mm being most common (43 of 67). Increment ranged between 0.5 and 1.25 mm. Software support for LCS was used by 90% of respondents (35 of 39), primarily for nodule detection (92%), volumetry (89%), and calculation of volume doubling time (71%). Image reconstruction was dominated by iterative reconstruction with statistical modeling (30) or deep learning support (7), while filtered-back projection was marginally used (4).

conclusionsLung cancer screening often pushes current device limits, which warrants a multiprofessional establishment of CT protocols. Variability in reconstruction calls for further study on the effects on volumetry. Optimizing protocols remains crucial to balance radiation dose reduction and diagnostic accuracy in guideline development. CRITICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: This international study evaluates current CT image acquisition protocols in lung cancer screening and implications for guidelines, highlighting insufficient multiprofessional engagement for protocol definition and pronounced variability in technical parameters, both of which demand harmonization to inform robust guideline development. KEY POINTS: Variability of CT acquisition protocols impacts lung cancer screening. International survey results shed light on currently applied protocols. The narrowed knowledge gap supports guideline recommendations and standardization.

Indexed as

Lung neoplasmsMass screeningRadiation exposureThoraxTomography (X-ray computed)

Identifiers

PMID41838308
PMCPMC12992829

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.