Cars parked outside a Sainsbury’s supermarket, Chippenham, Wiltshire, England. The public of the country … [+]
Bosses at health charities have praised a community screening program in England that has helped detect thousands of cases of lung cancer at an earlier stage.
The country’s public health agency has offered free lung scans outside supermarkets, sports stadiums and in city centers since 2019.
People aged 55 to 74 who smoke or have smoked are invited for the scans after an initial consultation with a healthcare provider, who will determine whether they are at high risk for the disease.
The screening program, which focuses on areas in the country with the highest rates of lung cancer, has resulted in 5,037 diagnoses to date. About 76% of these were found in stage one or stage two, when they may be curable. according to the country’s public health department.
The scheme has been particularly useful in the most deprived parts of the country, where lung cancer is more common. More than a third of people living in the poorest areas of England were diagnosed at an earlier stage than before checks started.
It will be rolled out to all parts of Britain by 2030.
Deadliest form of cancer
Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in the country, with 49,000 people diagnosed annually. according to Cancer Research UK.
It is also the deadliest form of cancer in Britain, claiming around 34,800 lives every year. That is why it is an important target for health policy.
Lawmakers are already moving to ban the sale of tobacco products to anyone born after January 1, 2009, largely because of its link to cancer.
Free smoking cessation services are also available across the country, although funding for initiatives at local government level has come under pressure in recent years.
Public health subsidies for municipalities have fallen by 24 percent since 2015/2016, measured per capita. said the Association of Local Authorities. But additional funding for smoking cessation services were announced last year.
The country’s targeted lung checks are intended to detect the disease as early as possible, when it is more curable. Patients at this stage may have no symptoms, meaning the diagnosis is often made relatively late.
If symptoms are present, they include persistent hoarseness or coughing that lasts for at least three weeks or worsens, recurrent respiratory infections, coughing up blood, painful coughing or breathing, persistent shortness of breath, and an unexplained loss of appetite.
‘It could save your life’
“You can be fit and healthy and have no symptoms and still have lung cancer,” says Paula Chadwick, chief executive of the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation. “So it’s so important to have the check. It could save your life.”
Michelle Mitchell, CEO of Cancer Research UK, said the program is “already having a huge impact on people’s lives” in England “by bringing care into the community and providing support to quit smoking.”
“We hope that targeted lung screening is implemented across Britain so that people can benefit from potentially life-saving checks,” she said, adding that it was “essential that people have access to help to quit smoking, both during and after the program.”