Outdated X-rays miss quarter of lung cancer cases

LUNG cancer is being missed at an early opportunity in almost a quarter of cases due to the use of outdated X-rays, researchers have found.

A review in the British Journal of General Practice reveals that despite being the recommended method for investigating suspicious symptoms, such as persistent coughs or chest aches, X-rays miss up to 23 per cent of patients with the disease.

Researchers say it may partly explain the UK’S poor survival rates when compared to similar European countries.

Accounting for more than 35,000 deaths a year, lung cancer is the biggest cancer killer, with fewer than one in 10 patients surviving for five years after diagnosis. Survival rates have barely improved over the past 40 years.

Researchers at the universities of Leeds and Exeter drew on data from 21 previous studies, concluding that the X-ray sensitivity for detecting lung cancer was 77-80 per cent.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends GPS order an X-ray – costing around £25 – in the first instance if they suspect lung cancer. However, researchers suggest CT (computed tomography) scanning, which costs significantly more and is time-consuming, should be considered as a replacement first-line test.

They wrote: “Our lung cancer outcomes still lag behind other high income countries, with fewer patients diagnosed at early stages of the illness.

“There are likely to be many reasons for this, but this research suggests that one factor could be our reliance on chest X-ray, compared to other countries that make more use of tests like computed tomography scans.”