BOSTON — Massachusetts is ranked top in the nation for lung cancer screening, early diagnosis and surgical treatment, which advocates say is saving lives and keeping health care costs down, according to a new report.
The American Lung Association’s latest “State of Lung Cancer” report gave the state a No. 1 ranking for early diagnosis of lung cancer with a 31.9% of cases in 2021 diagnosed at an early stage, when the survival rate is much higher. Nationally, 25.8% of cases diagnosed early last year.
The state also got a No. 1 ranking for the number of at-risk people who get annual CT scan screenings, or 16.5%, compared to 5.8% nationally.
Massachusetts also got a top ranking for the number of lung cancer patients who underwent surgery, or 31.2%, of those who were diagnosed. The national rate was 20.8% in 2021, according to the report.
But advocates say despite the state’s top rankings, an estimated 83% of Bay Staters who are at-risk for lung cancer haven’t yet been screened.
“Lung cancer screening is key to early diagnosis, and early diagnosis saves lives,” said Daniel Fitzgerald, director of advocacy at the American Lung Association in Massachusetts.
“If you are eligible for lung cancer screening, we encourage you to speak with your doctor about it,” he said. “If a loved one is eligible, please encourage them to get screened.”
Overall, the report showed an increase in the five-year survival rate from the cancer nationwide, which is now 25%. That includes a sizable increase of 21% from 2014 to 2018. The report said there was no survival rate data available for Massachusetts.
The report highlighted disparities between ethnic and racial groups with Blacks and Hispanics less likely to be diagnosed early and receive treatment.
In Massachusetts, Asian Americans and Pacific islanders are least likely to undergo regularly screening for lung cancer, the report’s authors noted.
Massachusetts has hiked age requirements to buy tobacco products, raised taxes and enacted some of the toughest regulations in the country in an effort to get people to stop smoking cigarettes and other tobacco products.
In 2019, Gov. Charlie Baker signed into law a bill raising the minimum legal age from 18 to 21 for buying cigarettes and prohibiting pharmacies from selling tobacco products. The law included a first-in-the-nation ban on the sale of flavored tobacco, including menthol and mint cigarettes, in the state.
But health advocates say more attention must be paid to cancer prevention efforts, such as anti-smoking programs to keep kids from getting hooked.
They point out that the state has devoted huge sums of money and resources to battling the opioid addiction, but little to anti-smoking campaigns.
Massachusetts collected more than $300 million in tobacco taxes in the fiscal year that ended June 30, not including $100 million in payments it received tied to a 1998 settlement with major tobacco companies, according to state budget figures.
But the state only spent a fraction of that — about $5.6 million — on smoking cessation programs in the previous fiscal year.
More than 9,000 Massachusetts residents die each year from smoking-related diseases, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Annual costs of tobacco-related illnesses in the state have risen to $4 billion, the agency says.
Christian M. Wade covers the Massachusetts Statehouse for North of Boston Media Group’s newspapers and websites. Email him at cwade@cnhinews.com.
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