Participation in community-based lung cancer screening: the Yorkshire Lung Screening Trial

What is it about?

Lung cancer is a deadly disease, but if found early it can be cured. Scanning smokers with low dose CT scans, before symptoms develop, is one approach to find early stage disease. This is called screening. Lung cancer screening saves lives, but does not work for everyone, only people who have smoked and who are at higher risk. We designed a novel approach to lung cancer screening which included a free telephone line that smokers contacted to determine if they were eligible for screening. Those who were found to be at higher risk at the time of the phone call were invited to have a Lung Health Check on a mobile screening truck, which was located in convenient community locations such as supermarket car parks. The Lung Health Check included an assessment of symptoms, lung cancer risk, breathing tests and support to stop smoking. Those at higher risk of lung cancer were offered an immediate scan in a mobile CT scanner. We found that our approach to screening was effective and over half the people invited contacted the telephone service. The majority of individuals then invited to have a Lung Health Check took up the offer. However, people who currently smoke and those from more deprived areas were less likely to take part. This underlines the importance of further research to ensure those at most risk of lung cancer are able to benefit from screening.

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