Brits experiencing a prevalent symptom will be given the opportunity to undergo a groundbreaking cancer test at their local high-street pharmacies. The pioneering “sponge on a string” test is part of a new NHS pilot aimed at preventing oesophageal cancer.
As announced by NHS England, numerous pharmacies across England will introduce “heartburn health checks” to detect Barrett’s oesophagus – a potential precursor to oesophageal cancer, which claims over 8,000 lives in the UK annually. A key sign of this is regularly having heartburn.
During the test, patients swallow a small pill attached to a thread. Upon reaching the stomach, it expands into a sponge roughly the size of a penny. After a few minutes, the sponge is carefully removed, collecting cells from the oesophagus lining, which are then examined in a lab for pre-cancerous changes.
