Dr Haidry spearheads groundbreaking study on capsule sponge test, paving the way for National Oesophageal Cancer Screening
A new study, published in Frontline Gastroenterology, has shown how populations at-risk of Oesophageal Cancer can identified and expediently screened with a ‘capsule sponge device’ in a mobile testing unit. The research was a collaboration between Heartburn Cancer UK (HCUK) and the Cleveland Clinic. The study used a non-invasive swallowable ‘capsule sponge’ test (EndoSign by Cyted) to screen for cancerous and pre-cancerous cells in a non-hospital environment (a mobile testing unit).
Currently the NHS runs three national screening programmes (breast for women aged 50-71, cervical for women aged >25 and bowel for those aged 50-74). While mammograms for breast screening involves using high tech hospital equipment, bowel screening is a small faecal sample which patients complete at home. EndoSign is a simple check that only takes about 15 minutes to complete.
“Before EndoSign, we relied on endoscopy (a camera down the throat) to check for oesophageal cancer which is a fairly resource heavy hospital procedure,” explains Dr Rehan Haidry, “With EndoSign we have a sample of cells in minutes, carried out by one healthcare professional in a non-clinical setting. If anyone aged over 40 with chronic heartburn could be assessed as part of a national screening programme, we would see many lives saved. For example, while 77% were given the all clear, around 1 in 4 in our study had results (pre-cancerous or cancerous cells) which warranted further investigation.”
In the UK sadly 81% of oesophageal cancer patients are diagnosed with late-stage disease (stage 3 or 4) where interventions are more intensive and patient outcomes are worse. The patients diagnosed at stage 4 have a one-year survival rate of 21%, and a five-year survival rate of 0% due to the aggressive nature of the disease.
EndoSign has been developed to detect cancer and pre-cancer early when management of the disease is effective and in many cases curative. There is a much brighter outlook for those who detect oesophageal cancer early with cure rates of over 90% and excellent long-term disease-free survival.