Missed Lung Cancer

Radiol Clin North Am. 2018 May;56(3):365-375. doi: 10.1016/j.rcl.2018.01.004. Epub 2018 Mar 7.

Abstract

The chest radiograph is one of the most commonly used imaging studies and is the modality of choice for initial evaluation of many common clinical scenarios. Over the last two decades, chest computed tomography has been increasingly used for a wide variety of indications, including respiratory illnesses, trauma, oncologic staging, and more recently lung cancer screening. Diagnostic radiologists should be familiar with the common causes of missed lung cancers on imaging studies in order to avoid detection and interpretation errors. Failure to detect these lesions can potentially have serious implications for both patients as well as the interpreting radiologist.

Keywords: Chest radiography; Computed tomography; Lung cancer; Lung nodule; Observer performance.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Diagnostic Errors*
  • Humans
  • Lung / diagnostic imaging
  • Lung Neoplasms / diagnosis*
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Tomography, X-Ray Computed*