Researchers from the University of Liverpool and Queen Mary University of London have demonstrated further evidence of the benefits of lung cancer screening across socioeconomic groups in a new study published in Lancet Regional Health Europe.
Funded by the National Institute for Health Research’s Health Technology Assessment programme, the new evidence published also illustrates the importance of screening for individuals who live in areas of economic deprivation.
Affecting around 40,000 people every year in the UK, lung cancer is currently the third most common cancer in the country and the leading cause of cancer worldwide, accounting for an estimated 1.8 million deaths globally.
In the study, researchers examined the long-term outcomes of recruited participants from across the socioeconomic spectrum to assess the impact of socioeconomic status on a variety of factors, including initial recruitment, selection for screening, lung cancer detection and the long-term mortality impact from lung cancer and other diseases.
Results showed that individuals from a lower socioeconomic group benefited from low-dose CT screening in terms of lung cancer survival to the same degree as those who are better off.
In addition, results also demonstrated that screening may provide further health benefits for other smoking-related diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and emphysema, which disproportionately affect lower socioeconomic groups, as they were less often the cause of death when participants received a low-dose CT scan.
Emphysema is one of the two main lung diseases that make up COPD, a common lung condition that causes restricted airflow and breathing problems and affects 1.2 million people in the UK.
Dr Chris Warburton, respiratory consultant, Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and clinical lead, targeted lung health check programme, NHS Cheshire and Merseyside Cancer Alliance, commented: “This… data… demonstrates that lung cancer screening of high-risk populations not only delivers benefits in lung cancer outcomes for the most deprived in our society, but… could also have wider beneficial effects on other smoking-related diseases, such as COPD and cardiovascular disease.”