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OBJECTIVES: The introduction of low-dose CT (LDCT) altered the landscape of lung cancer (LC) screening and contributed to the reduction of mortality rates worldwide. Here we report the final results of HUNCHEST-II, the largest population-based LDCT screening program in Hungary, including the screening and diagnostic outcomes, and the characteristics of the LC cases. METHODS: A total of 4215 high-risk individuals aged between 50 and 75 years with a smoking history of at least 25 pack-years were assigned to undergo LDCT screening. Screening outcomes were determined based on the volume, growth, and volume doubling time of pulmonary nodules or masses. The clinical stage distribution of screen-detected cancers was compared with two independent practice-based databases consisting of unscreened LC patients. RESULTS: The percentage of negative and indeterminate tests at baseline were 74.2% and 21.7%, respectively, whereas the prevalence of positive LDCT results was 4.1%. Overall, 76 LC patients were diagnosed throughout the screening rounds (1.8% of total participants), out of which 62 (1.5%) patients were already identified in the first screening round. The overall positive predictive value of a positive test was 58%. Most screen-detected malignancies were stage I LCs (60.7%), and only 16.4% of all cases could be classified as stage IV disease. The percentage of early-stage malignancies was significantly higher among HUNCHEST-II screen-detected individuals than among the LC patients in the National Koranyi Institute of Pulmonology's archive or the Hungarian Cancer Registry (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: HUNCHEST-II demonstrates that LDCT screening for LC facilitates early diagnosis, thus arguing in favor of introducing systematic LC screening in Hungary. CLINICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: HUNCHEST-II is the so-far largest population-based low-dose CT screening program in Hungary. A positive test's overall positive predictive value was 58%, and most screen-detected malignancies were early-stage lesions. These results pave the way for expansive systematic screening in the region. KEY POINTS: ⢠Conducted in 18 medical facilities, HUNCHEST-II is the so far largest population-based low-dose CT screening program in Hungary. ⢠The vast majority of screen-detected malignancies were early-stage lung cancers, and the overall positive predictive value of a positive test was 58%. ⢠HUNCHEST-II facilitates early diagnosis, thus arguing in favor of introducing systematic lung cancer screening in Hungary.
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INTRODUCTION: Carcinomatous meningitis is a serious complication of advanced stage solid tumours, which may become more common with improved survival. CASE REPORTS: A 53-year-old woman with a recent history of breast cancer (pT2pN2M0) had been treated by mastectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy. She presented with weakness, diplopia and vertigo raising the possibility of vertebrobasilar ischaemia or an intracranial mass. In another patient, a 62-year-old man with hypertension, a stenotic common bile duct had been diagnosed when examined for abdominal complaints. When he presented with a high blood pressure value accompanied by intensive headache, vomiting and bilateral hearing loss, he was thought to have a hypertensive crisis. The rapidly progressive neurological symptoms and the history of breast cancer and findings suggesting pancreatic head tumour, respectively, led to the clinical diagnosis of carcinomatous meningitis in both cases, despite any evidence on CT scans or a negative MR scan, though of limited value, in the first case. This diagnosis was confirmed by the laboratory and cytological findings of the cerebrospinal fluid, and also by the post mortem examination, since both patients died within a month after the onset of the symptoms. The primary tumour in the second patient proved to be a widely metastasizing diffuse type gastric cancer. CONCLUSION: Carcinomatous meningitis has a varying but characteristic presentation which generally makes it easy to diagnose, but it can sometimes present differential diagnostic problems. What we can learn from these two cases may help in recognizing this complication.