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Contact the study team using the details below to take part. If there are no contact details below please ask your doctor in the first instance.
Dr
Sam
Merriel
s.w.d.merriel@exeter.ac.uk
Dr
Sam
Merriel
s.w.d.merriel@exeter.ac.uk
Malignant neoplasms of lip, oral cavity and pharynx
This information is provided directly by researchers, and we recognise that it isn't always easy to understand. We are working with researchers to improve the accessibility of this information. In some summaries, you may come across links to external websites. These websites will have more information to help you better understand the study.
Early diagnosis of cancer is a priority for the NHS, with a target of 75% of new cancers diagnosed at an early stage by 2028. Diagnosing cancer early is key to allow a wider range of treatment options which increase the chances of survival. Cancer affecting the mouth, throat, neck, and the gut have some of the lowest levels of early diagnosis amongst all cancer types in the UK. These cancers very often have vague symptoms and are common amongst people with lifestyle habits such as smoking tobacco and drinking too much alcohol, making them very difficult to find early.
Certain markers in the body are linked to cancers - this project aims to find a new way to assist the early diagnosis of cancer in primary care and identify people with a high risk of cancer who might need an urgent referral from their GP for more tests. We will do this by developing special sensors that can fit on a toothbrush and find changes in these markers in saliva during teeth brushing done at home or in the GP surgery. We hope these new sensors can detect these markers related to cancers in the mouth, throat, neck and gut quickly, easily and cheaply.
This particular part of the project will involve collecting and analysing saliva samples from patients recently diagnosed with a cancer in the mouth, throat or upper airways (often called head & neck cancer) for the selected markers. We will also collect and analyse saliva samples from healthy individuals to compare to the patients with cancer to confirm which markers should be picked up by the special sensors. The findings will then be passed to the members of the research team who are building the sensors to inform their work.
Start dates may differ between countries and research sites. The research team are responsible for keeping the information up-to-date.
The recruitment start and end dates are as follows:
Observational type: Cross-sectional;
You can take part if:
You may not be able to take part if:
Head & Neck 5,000 cohort participants - Has not consented for sharing and further analysis of data collected as part of the cohort study - Late stage cancer (stage III/IV) at diagnosis - No saliva sample collected and/or available for extraction and proteomic analysis Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust patients - Diagnosis of head & neck cancer more than 3 months ago or late stage (stage III/IV) at diagnosis - Already commenced treatment for head & neck cancer - Not able to communicate in English language - Lacks capacity to give consent for participation in study Exeter 10,000 cohort - History of head & neck cancer - Not able to communicate in English language - Lack capacity to give consent for participation in study
Below are the locations for where you can take part in the trial. Please note that not all sites may be open.
The study is sponsored by University of Exeter and funded by CANCER RESEARCH UK .
Your feedback is important to us. It will help us improve the quality of the study information on this site. Please answer both questions.
Read full details
for Trial ID: CPMS 54359
You can print or share the study information with your GP/healthcare provider or contact the research team directly.
