THOUSANDS of Merseysiders have been asked to take part in a landmark lung cancer screening trial that could transform the way the disease is treated across the UK.

Researchers at the University of Liverpool have launched the trial to see if a screening programme could be rolled out nationally.

The potential benefits of screening would be hugely significant in Liverpool, as the city has the highest lung cancer death rates in the country. Letters are being sent to 45,000 homes in Liverpool, Knowsley and Sefton inviting men and women, aged 45-70, to join the project, called the UK Lung Cancer Screening Trial (UKLS).

Participants will be asked to complete a lifestyle questionnaire and may be invited to a recruitment clinic at the Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital in Broadgreen.

Individuals will then be selected at random to have a CT scan to trace early signs of the killer disease.

Professor John Field, Director of research of the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Research Programme, who is leading the trial, said: “Although the number of deaths from lung cancer is falling it still kills more than 35,000 people each year in the UK, which is more than any other cancer.

“The success of CT screening trials could potentially lead to the implementation of a national lung cancer screening programme, which could have an enormous impact on the future of all lung cancer treatment strategies.

“We could see significant changes in managing the disease, similar to the impact of breast screening over the last 15 years.”