Sponge pill test for diagnosing cancer rolled out

A "pill-on-a-thread" designed to diagnose cancer is being trialled among heartburn patients in Halifax.

People from across West Yorkshire were invited to take part in the oesophageal cancer trial at mobile screening vans in the town.

Richard Coyle, 61, was one of the first patients to undergo the procedure, which involved swallowing a small, coated sponge pill attached to a piece of thread.

He said: "I thought it was going to be quite invasive, and really, it was nothing. It was just a case of swallowing the pill, waiting for several minutes and then it's pulled out and there was no real discomfort at all."

"It was just a quick pull and a very slim amount of discomfort and that was it."

Mr Coyle said he had suffered from indigestion throughout his life and had tried a number of remedies.

"Heartburn has been a lifelong problem for me, but it has soothed recently as I've been drinking cabbage juice," he said.

"It's one of these things you hear about. I don't know whether I heard about it online but it isn't a magical solution. It's a mind thing really, but it seems to soothe it a bit."

He said he was pleased to have been asked to take part in the trial.

"If there's any positive signs of cancer of the oesophagus, the team book you in for an endoscopy and if not they'll keep monitoring you.

"I would recommend it to anybody. It's a harmless procedure and it's all for the good."

According to Cancer Research UK there are around 9,300 new cases of oesophageal cancer in the UK every year.

The sponge test takes 10 minutes and can be done by a nurse, meaning it is faster and less expensive than an endoscopy, said researchers.

The patient swallows the pill, the coating dissolves and the sponge inside it expands to the size of a cherry tomato.

The sponge collects cells from the oesophagus as it is pulled out from the stomach. The cells are then tested for two proteins which tell doctors if someone has Barrett's oesophagus or oesophageal cancer.

The trial was funded by Cancer Research UK and the National Institute for Health and Care Research.

Over the next three years researchers aim to recruit 120,000 people who take medication for heartburn.

Prof Rebecca Fitzgerald, inventor of the capsule sponge test and co-principal investigator of the study, said the trial was changing how the disease was detected.

"Catching it earlier can save lives by reducing the need for chemotherapy and surgery to remove the oesophagus," she said.

"This trial could fundamentally transform the lives of people affected by oesophageal cancer by providing the crucial evidence needed to make it a viable screening programme, rolled out to every part of the UK."

The Halifax mobile screening follows initial trials in Cambridgeshire in November 2024.

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