Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in Northern Ireland (NI), with 1,360 people diagnosed each year with the illness. Among patients diagnosed with lung cancer during 2013-2017, one-year survival after diagnosis was 38.2%, while five-year survival was 15.9%. However, almost one in two (44.6%) patients died within 6 months of diagnosis. 

Lung cancer is the third most common cancer in the Republic of Ireland (RoI) accounting for 2,586 new cases per year between 2019 and 2021.  The annual incidence was 1,386 in men and 1,199 in females.

The LUNG SHOT project, led by Cancer Health Economist from Queen’s, Doctor Ethna McFerran, will bring leading experts and key stakeholders from NI and RoI together, to create a collaborative approach to tackling one of the islands most pressing public health challenges.

Despite the growing evidence that early detection through screening can significantly reduce mortality, neither region have yet funded a formal lung cancer screening programme.

Doctor Ethna McFerran, lead investigator from the Patrick G Johnston Centre for Cancer Research, School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Sciences at Queen’s said:

“Our research will take an extremely collaborative, cross-border approach, leveraging the expertise and resources of both jurisdictions. By working together with both the Public Health Agency in NI and the Health Service Executive (HSE) in RoI, we aim to ensure that the research evidence we develop will show how we can establish programmes for lung cancer screening which are feasible, effective, and sustainable across the island.

“This project is incredibly significant as it will enable us to link with patient advocacy groups and community partnerships to ensure that the screening programmes are tailored to local needs, while benefiting from international expertise and best practices.

“The findings will provide vital insights into how lung cancer screening can be integrated into existing healthcare systems, with the potential to save lives by detecting cancer earlier, when treatment is more effective.”

This project, alongside two others led by Queen’s, have received significant investment of over €450k from the Health Research Board (HRB) through its All-Ireland NCI Cancer Consortium, a pilot scheme that is designed to stimulate cross border and transatlantic cancer research and innovation.

Dr Damien Bennett, Director of the NI Cancer Registry (NICR) at Queen’s will lead an All-Island Cancer Atlas, which will map the geographical distribution of cancers across the island of Ireland and examine variation by cancer type, socio-economic and demographic factors.

In addition, Professor Nick Orr, will lead ‘Empowering the high-throughput characterisation of non-coding genome mutations for cancer precision medicine’, which will develop and implement advanced laboratory techniques to study how certain genetic changes which don’t directly code for proteins may influence cancer risk.

Commenting on the significance of the three Queen’s led projects, Professor Mark Lawler, Professor of Digital Health at Queen’s, Co-Lead of the All-Island Cancer Research Institute (AICRI) and a co-investigator on LUNG SHOT and All Island Cancer Atlas projects said:

“I am delighted with our success at Queen’s in being awarded three out of the five projects that were funded in this round of the programme; congratulations to Ethna, Damien and Nick. It  emphasises our international leadership in cancer research and strengthens our partnerships with researchers at the world-renowned NCI in Washington DC, USA.

“It is particularly timely as we celebrate the 25^th Anniversary of the Ireland – Northern Ireland – US National Cancer Institute, a transatlantic partnership which has delivered so much for cancer researchers and cancer patients on the island of Ireland. Our success is also particularly poignant given the leadership role that the late Professor Patrick (Paddy) Johnston played in establishing this unique tripartite consortium which has funded these innovative research projects.”    

HRB Chief Executive, Dr Mairéad O’Driscoll, added:

“These HRB awards build on the work of the consortium and are designed to further advance all-island and trans-Atlantic multi-disciplinary cancer research collaborations, networking, and engagement. We are committed to expanding this scheme going forward.”