SUMMIT, the largest ever UK lung cancer screening study being delivered by UCLH, has begun seeing participants at four London hospitals – University College Hospital, Mile End, Finchley Memorial, and King George Hospitals.
The teams will be screening people who have been identified by their GPs as meeting eligibility requirements. The study aims to improve the early detection of lung cancer when it can be treated more successfully. The study also supports the work on the development of a blood test for the early detection of lung and multiple other cancer types.
The study is being conducted by UCLH in close collaboration with UCL, the NIHR UCLH BRC and GRAIL, Inc. (a US healthcare company focused on the early detection of cancer). The study aims to recruit approximately 50,000 men and women aged 50-77.
The first phase of the study is focused on screening approximately 25,000 men and women, aged 50-77, who are at a higher risk of lung and other cancers due to their smoking history. Later, another 25,000 people who have a low risk for cancer will be invited to participate in the same screening. All participants will provide a blood sample, which GRAIL will analyse to evaluate whether lung or other cancers can be detected early through signals in the blood. The results will not be returned to GPs or the participants.
“We are pleased that screening is underway and we’re grateful for the cooperation of local GPs who are supporting this important research programme,” says Sam Janes, professor of respiratory medicine at UCL/UCLH and Chief Investigator of the study. “A study of this size provides a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to change how lung cancer is diagnosed. It could lead to a national screening programme in the UK and play a vital part in the global efforts to develop a blood test for diagnosing cancers.”
Local people are being invited by letter to be screened only if their GP practice is taking part in the study. They will be asked to complete a questionnaire, have a blood test and if eligible, a low dose CT scan of their lungs.
Lung cancer kills 35,000 people in Britain each year. It has the highest death rate of all the cancers.
