Abstract
Background: Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer related death in Ireland. The majority of lung cancers are inoperable at the time of diagnosis and consequently the overall 5 year survival is less than 10%. The objective of the ProActive Lung Cancer Detection (PALCAD) study was to evaluate whether low dose chest computed tomographic scanning (LDCCT) can detect early stage asymptomatic lung cancer in a high risk urban population.