More than 700 people in Greater Manchester – have been diagnosed with lung cancer earlier thanks to an innovative NHS initiative, which uses mobile scanning trucks to visit local communities.
The NHS Targeted Lung Health Check programme is the biggest initiative in NHS history aimed at improving early lung cancer diagnosis, and is specifically targeted at areas of the country with the highest rates of lung cancer.
The latest NHS data shows that 5,037 lung cancers have now been found in England through the programme since its launch in 2019. This includes over 700 lung cancer cancers found in Greater Manchester.
Data also shows that more than three-quarters (76%) of the lung cancers identified by the programme were found at the earliest stages of one and two, when it is potentially curable. People diagnosed with lung cancer at the earliest stages are nearly 20 times more likely to survive for five years than those whose cancer is caught late.
Using a mix of hospital services and roving scanning trucks that visit convenient community sites, such as supermarket carparks, sports stadiums and town centres, in-depth lung health checks are carried out on current and past smokers.
NHS data also shows that more than a third of people diagnosed with lung cancer from the most deprived areas of England were diagnosed at an earlier stage since the targeted lung health checks initiative began.
In Greater Manchester the programme – is jointly organised by the Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust. It sees people who are current or former smokers aged 55 to 74 offered a quick, free lung health check on board a mobile clinic which is usually parked at a convenient community location such as a supermarket car park. People are contacted for an appointment by invitation.
The programme has already seen patients from over 200 GP practices across Greater Manchester invited for a lung health check. Eligible patients (smokers and former smokers aged 55-74) will be sent an invite when the programme comes to their area. They will be rolled out to even more areas in the coming months and years to ensure that all eligible participants across Greater Manchester are invited.
One person who has benefited from an earlier cancer diagnosis thanks to the NHS Targeted Lung Health Check programme is Phil Bennett, from Droylsden. When ex-smoker Phil, aged 67, first received his NHS invitation for a Lung Health Check by letter in December 2021 he was busy with work and initially ignored the invite because he felt OK. But later due to some delays at work, Phil was left with a bit of free time, so he decided to re-book and attended the mobile clinic when it was based at Asda in Ashton-under-Lyme.
The check Phil discovered he needed a further investigation at hospital and he was shocked to discover he had lung cancer.
Luckily Phil’s lung cancer was caught at an early stage, stage one, and he had successful surgery to remove it at Wythenshawe Hospital in 2022. He did not require any further treatment like chemotherapy. Three months later he was given the all-clear.
Phil said: “I’m lucky I decided to re-book and go for my Lung Health Check. I’d strongly advise anyone to go to for a Lung Health Check when they get the letter. It could potentially save your life. It did for me.”
Dr Haval Balata, Consultant Respiratory Physician at Wythenshawe Hospital and Responsible Clinician for the Greater Manchester Targeted Lung Health Check Programme said: “In Greater Manchester we have now detected over 700 cases of lung cancer using the NHS Targeted Lung Health Check – the majority at the earliest stage when the cancer is at its most treatable.
“The NHS Targeted Lung Health Check programme is revolutionising how we detect lung cancer in Greater Manchester and saving lives.
“Our mobile units ensure we take the checks out into our communities – starting with those that have higher smoking rates – so we can directly check those at most risk.
“We’ll be continuing to roll the service out across Greater Manchester over the next few years.”
