Lung cancer: Co Armagh patient says early screening could have made a difference

A Co Armagh lung cancer patient today (Monday) backed calls for an early-stage screening programme.

The great-grandfather, from Lurgan, has been living with Stage 4 lung cancer for more than two years.

In an interview with Downtown Radio & Cool FM he said he would have benefited from early screening and believes it could have made a difference.

“To me it is simple, screening will save lives," he said.

“I don’t know if in my case it would have made a difference but it could have. I was told my tumour was inoperable, if it had been picked up earlier with screening, then who knows what the doctors could have done."

Gerard (75) a retired bricklayer from Craigavon, had been unwell for several months before he went to see his GP.

He was eventually diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer in March 2021.

The tumour was inoperable, but Gerard received four rounds of chemotherapy, 10 sessions of radiotherapy and is currently being treated with immunotherapy.

Cancer Research UK said figures highlighted the "urgent need" for the introduction of a targeted-screening programme for lung cancer which remains the leading cause of cancer death in Northern Ireland.

Analysis by the charity estimates that 1,400 more patients across Northern Ireland could be diagnosed with the disease at an early stage when it is easier to treat - over the next decade if screening is available.

With lung checks already being rolled out in England, there are currently no confirmed plans for an equivalent initiative in Northern Ireland where around 890 people are currently diagnosed at a later stage (stages 3 and 4) out of around 1,300 people diagnosed with lung cancer every year.***

The UK National Screening Committee has recommended that all UK nations move towards implementing lung cancer screening to target those most at risk of developing lung cancer – people aged between 55 and 74 who either smoke or used to smoke.

Barbara Roulston, Cancer Research UK’s public affairs manager for Northern Ireland, said:

“Lung cancer is a tragedy for Northern Ireland and is devastating families, some of those who live among our poorest communities.

“The introduction of a targeted lung cancer screening programme is a real chance to change that.

“Access to lung screening matters because it means more people may be diagnosed at an early stage, when more treatment options are available.

“There have been big improvements in how we diagnose and treat other forms of cancer, but long-term lung cancer survival in the UK isn’t much higher than it was 50 years ago.

“This is unacceptable when evidence shows that earlier diagnosis through lung cancer screening can potentially help hundreds of people live longer healthier lives.”

Gerard, who has eight children, 22 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren said: “I feel blessed that the treatment is keeping it under control and I have a good quality of life, but for others who aren’t so fortunate, screening might have made the difference.

“If the government believes it will make a difference to people in England, then people here in Northern Ireland should have the same chance.”