A test that can detect oesophageal cancer at an earlier stage than current methods should be made more widely available to prevent deaths, charities say.
In the capsule sponge test, formerly known as Cytosponge, a patient swallows a soluble pill on a string. The pill then releases a sponge that collects cells from the esophagus as it is retrieved.
The test can detect abnormalities that are part of a condition known as Barrett’s esophagus, which makes a person more likely to develop esophageal cancer.
According to Cancer Research, 9,300 people in the UK are diagnosed with oesophageal cancer every year. The disease is difficult to detect because the symptoms of the cancer are not easily recognizable – and can be mistaken for indigestion – until the cancer is in an advanced stage.
The disease has a ten-year survival rate of 12%, a rate that rises to 55% if the cancer is detected early, in the first stage.
The capsule sponge test can detect the cancer at an earlier stage than current methods, such as endoscopy, used to diagnose esophageal cancer. However, it is currently only available to higher risk patients as an alternative to endoscopy as part of NHS pilot programmes.
Cancer Research UK is working with the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) on a trial recruiting 120,000 people to see if the capsule sponge test can reduce deaths from oesophageal cancer. If this is successful, the test can be rolled out more widely.
Mimi McCord, the founder of Heartburn Cancer UK, who lost her husband Mike to oesophageal cancer in 2002, said: “Cancer of the oesophagus is a fatal disease that can hide in plain sight. People don’t always realize it, but not all heartburn is harmless. While they continue to treat the symptoms, the underlying cause can become fatal.”
The charity is calling for wider acceptance of the capsule sponge test so that patients can be diagnosed earlier and have a better chance of survival. “We have a trial. We know it works. People are dying while we wait to make it widely available,” McCord said.
Dr. Lyndsy Ambler, senior strategic evidence manager at Cancer Research UK, said: “Around 59% of all cases of oesophageal cancer are preventable. Yet endoscopy, the gold standard for diagnosing this cancer, is labor intensive.
“We need better tools and tests to diagnose esophageal cancer and identify and monitor people most at risk.
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“It is already making a difference in pilots across the NHS in England, Scotland and Wales to reduce endoscopy backlogs due to the pandemic.”
A spokesperson for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said: “Our guideline committee identified Cytosponge as a tool that could benefit the NHS in diagnosing dysplasia and cancer, but the quality of evidence was not sufficient to support its use. Currently.
“We are aware of two ongoing studies and are hopeful that they can provide the evidence needed to fully assess the clinical and cost-effectiveness of this potentially useful device.”