NHS pilot lung screening programme detects lung cancer at an earlier stage
At present, around 74% of lung cancer present to the NHS at a late stage – either stage III or stage IV when they are difficult to treat. As part of the contribution to the ambition of the NHS Long Term Plan to improve early diagnosis and survival for those diagnosed with cancer, a pilot was launched to effectively screen high risk lung cancer patients.
Commencing in 2021, Corby was one of the 17 pilot sites running the ‘Targeted lung health check programme’ in England. Patients aged between 55 and 74 years old, with a history of smoking and who were registered with a Corby GP, were invited for one of these lung health checks. The aim of the programme was to pick up cancers early, when they are more treatable. The programme will run until October 2024.
What happened during the programme
- Eligible patients invited to make an appointment for a lung health check
- Telephone consultation with specially trained staff
- Those assessed as high risk will be offered a low dose Computerised Tomography (CT) scan
- Any abnormalities picked up during the lung scan are referred for further investigation
- Stop smoking advice offered to current smokers
Dr Az Ali, Clinical cancer lead for Northamptonshire ICB said: “We were delighted to be selected as one of the pilots for this screening programme which has undoubtedly made a difference to our local eligible population – helping to identify cancers much earlier”.
Headline results:
- 11,250 patients invited to date
- 5,150 assessments have taken place to date
- 2,300 lung scans have taken place to date
- 52 patients have been diagnosed with lung cancer and 9 other types of cancer to date
Dr Ali added: “The detection rate from this pilot to date is higher than the average pick up rate of other screening programmes, making it valuable for us in improving early detection, and because of this we have commenced the process to look at rolling out the programme across Northamptonshire over the next four years so can increase the number of cancers picked up in the early stages (1 and 2) when they are more treatable.”
NHS England is conducting a national evaluation to understand the impacts and economics of the programme. Early findings indicate that the evaluation will demonstrate impacts on patient health outcomes, experience and wider health inequalities. Findings from the evaluation will ensure an evidence-based approach to NHS England’s longer-term strategy for wider roll out of a targeted screening programme of this kind. Ipsos, together with the Strategy Unit at the Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit (CSU), which is part of NHS England, have been appointed jointly as the national evaluation partner.