Lung cancer staging presentation stirs debate about noncontrast imaging protocol

Radiologists may have to make only minor changes to their practices to adjust to the new international standards for lung cancer staging, but a lecture covering their implications was still controversial enough to send sparks flying Aug. 4 at the World Conference on Lung Cancer in San Francisco. The point of contention during a question and answer session arose after plenary lecturer Dr. Ned Patz, a thoracic radiologist from Duke University, recommended noncontrast thoracic CT for staging. He had advised some 2000 physicians in the audience that contrast enhancement is a hotly debated question. That point proved true when Dr. John C. Ruckdeschel, CEO of the Nevada Cancer Institute, took to the microphone to challenge the recommendation.

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