Doctor and patient reminders increased lung cancer screening
Reminders increased annual screening adherence by 27.7 percentage points compared with no reminders in a randomized trial of 1,837 adults.
1,837 trial participants, registered NCT05747443
Limit: Analysis excluded 218 participants after cancer diagnoses, deaths, early scans, or health-plan departures
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
At Kaiser Permanente Washington, a randomized trial enrolled 1,837 adults aged 50–78 whose lung screening scans were negative or benign. Among them, 48.8% were female and 47.6% currently used tobacco. Participants received usual care, print and video messages, stepped reminders, or both.
Messages arrived three weeks after initial screening. About four weeks before the next annual scan was due, a coordinator prepared orders for doctors to sign, then contacted patients to schedule, adding calls if needed. Within 9–15 months of initial screening, 75.5% of reminder recipients completed a low-dose screening scan or a chest scan used for diagnosis, versus 47.4% without reminders. The adjusted increase was 27.7 percentage points. Print and video messaging lowered adherence by 4.7 percentage points compared with no messaging.
Why it matters
For older adults already undergoing lung cancer screening, the work addresses how health systems can sustain recommended preventive care over time.
Caveats
The analysis excluded 218 randomized participants after lung cancer diagnoses, deaths, early scans or health-plan departures. Results came from one health system and do not cover adults outside ages 50–78 or people with prior lung cancer.
The paper
Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
JAMA Internal Medicine, Aug 10, 2026, Open access
