When she was selected to be part of the programme, Sandra said she had no hesitation in getting checked out.
“Within three days I was there having a CT scan in Tesco’s car park,” she said.
“[It was] absolutely incredible. It’s five minutes from me down the road anyway so there was nowhere to travel”.
Sandra had the tumour removed using keyhole surgery and is now cancer free.
“Had I not taken up that offer, it could have been a couple of years later before I had symptoms,” she said.
The project aims to screen everyone in the Thames Valley aged 55 to 75 who has ever smoked.
Those selected are informed by letter, inviting them to have a phone call with a member of the team, during which the patient’s risk level is assessed and they can be invited for a free, low-dose CT scan.
Since the programme launched in July 2022, 17,675 CT scans have been carried out, identifying 169 cancers, 73% of which were diagnosed at stages one or two.
