Disease Introduction
Pulmonary nodules are round or oval shadows with a diameter of no more than 3 cm found on a CT scan during a physical examination. More than 90% of them are benign, and most do not require immediate surgery. The standard practice is to first assess the risk of benignity or malignancy using thin-section CT combined with AI-assisted interpretation, and then follow up and observe them in layers according to the size and nature of the nodule (solid, ground-glass opacity). Only those that are highly suspicious or high-risk are considered for minimally invasive resection or ablation treatment.
Cutting-edge high-precision diagnostic and treatment technologies
- AI Intelligent Assessment : The 2025 edition of the Chinese Medical Association's Lung Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment Guidelines recommends AI-assisted image interpretation to reduce the burden of manual image interpretation and improve the accuracy of nodule detection and diagnosis;
- Ultra-low dose CT : By 2025, deep learning reconstruction will enable clearer ultra-low dose CT images (radiation as low as approximately 0.16 mSv) and more accurate detection of ground-glass nodules;
- Stratified follow-up consensus : The Chinese Expert Consensus on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Pulmonary Nodules (2024 Edition) classifies and manages ground-glass nodules with 5mm as the cutoff, and various regions refine the follow-up interval accordingly;
- Thermal ablation therapy : Microwave and radiofrequency ablation are used for high-risk nodules no larger than 3 cm that cannot be treated or refuse surgery. It requires only one needle, is minimally invasive, and can be repeated.
- Multimodal Systems : In 2025, the multimodal tumor treatment system will be approved for lung indication, providing a new option for efficient, visualized, and precise local treatment of lung tumors.
