New lung cancer screening service for eligible North Devon patients

Smokers and ex-smokers in North Devon are set to be invited to a new lung cancer screening service launched by the NHS today (Wednesday, April 23).

Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, the Peninsula Cancer Alliance, and InHealth are working together to deliver the Lung Cancer Screening programme via a mobile service.

From April, people in North Devon aged 55 to 74-years-old who are current or ex-smokers, or those with a known history of exposure to occupational hazards, will be invited in phases by InHealth for a lung health check.

The lung cancer screening takes place in two stages. The first stage is an initial phone assessment with a specially trained healthcare professional.

If necessary, this is followed by a simple scan of the lungs using a low dose CT scanner. This will take place at the mobile unit that is currently stationed in the car park at ASDA in Barnstaple.

The NHS says Devon has one of the highest mortality rates for lung cancer in England and is one of 43 places across the country to run the screening programme. It is already underway in Plymouth and will be rolled out to East Devon later this year.

Dr Thomas Burden, respiratory consultant at Royal Devon said: “We’re really pleased to be introducing the lung cancer screening to our patients in North Devon first before rolling out to Eastern patients later in the year.

“This is the biggest positive change to lung cancer care since I became a consultant. The programme will save lives by detecting lung cancer earlier, when treatment is more effective.”

Fellow respiratory consultant Dr Kate Cockcroft added: “Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in the UK and is often diagnosed at advanced stages when treatment options are limited.

“If you’re invited for a lung health check then I really recommend that you attend. Patients have told us that the screening is straightforward and we know that it can be lifesaving.”

To date the NHS Lung Cancer Screening programme, has seen more than three quarters (77%) of cancers caught at either stage one or two, giving patients a much better chance of beating the illness. This compares to less than a third of cancers caught at either stage one or two in 2018.