CHAMP Lung Cancer Screening Program

Purpose

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends annual lung cancer screening (LCS) with low-dose CT for adults aged 50-80 with a ≥20 pack-year smoking history who currently smoke or quit within the past 15 years. Despite insurance coverage, only 17% of eligible Iowans were screened in 2024. Barriers include the complexity of screening and competing demands in primary care. To address these challenges, investigators propose a two-part intervention: a blood-based screening test to simplify LCS and a community pharmacist-led referral program integrated into routine pharmacy care. Eligible patients will be identified at Greenwood Pharmacy in Waterloo, Iowa. Interested individuals will be consented by a pharmacist and engaged in shared decision-making about LCS. Participants may decline screening, complete the DELFI Diagnostics FirstLook lung cancer screening blood test, or pursue CT screening through their primary care physician. Those choosing the blood test will be referred to Cedar Valley Family Medicine. Patients with a positive result will complete a standard shared decision-making visit with their PCP and, if appropriate, undergo confirmatory CT imaging. Patients with a negative result will enter a screening cohort and be re-screened annually for an additional year.

Conditions

  • Lung Cancer
  • Early Lung Cancer Detection

Eligibility

Eligible Ages
Between 50 Years and 77 Years
Eligible Sex
All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
No

Inclusion Criteria

  • aged 50-77 - smoking pack-year history of ≥ 20 years - current smoker or quit smoking 15 or less years ago - ability to understand and willingness to sign a written informed consent document

Exclusion Criteria

  • self-report of lung cancer screening in the last 12 months - psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements

Study Design

Phase
N/A
Study Type
Interventional
Allocation
Non-Randomized
Intervention Model
Parallel Assignment
Primary Purpose
Screening
Masking
None (Open Label)

Arm Groups

ArmDescriptionAssigned Intervention
Experimental
DELFI FirstLook Lung Cancer Screening Blood Test
Participants may choose to receive the DELFI Diagnostics FirstLook Lung test, a blood-based screening test designed to support early detection of lung cancer. The test analyzes patterns in cell-free DNA fragments using whole-genome sequencing and machine-learning techniques. Designed to augment traditional low-dose CT screening, it offers a minimally invasive and accessible option for early lung cancer detection. If a participant elects to receive this test, a blood sample will be collected at a study clinic and sent to a DELFI Diagnostics lab without any personal identifying health information attached. After processing, results are returned to the study team. Participants will be notified if results are not elevated, in which case repeating the test in one year is recommended. If results are elevated, study staff will recommend follow-up screening with a low-dose CT scan from local clinic for further evaluation. Both the blood test and CT will be provided by the study at no cost.
  • Diagnostic Test: DELFI Diagnostics FirstLook Lung Cancer Screening Blood Test
    A participant can choose to receive this test. This is done by receiving a blood draw. The blood sample is sent to the DELFI Diagnositics lab without any personal health information attached. Results will be relayed to the participant as either "elevated" or "not elevated". IF the result is "elevated" the participant will be recommended to receive a low-dose CT scan.
Active Comparator
Low-Dose CT
Participants can choose to follow current US Preventive Services Task Force recommendations of a low-dose CT scan ordered through their primary care physician.
  • Diagnostic Test: Low-Does CT Scan
    If a participant chooses this arm, the participant will request their primary care physician to order them a low-dose CT scan as part of the USPSTF standards for lung cancer screening. Participants will be asked to fax the results of those scans to the study.
No Intervention
No lung cancer screening
Participants chose to not participate in lung cancer screening. Annually, participants will be informed about lung cancer screening options and given the opportunity to participate in one of the screening options. Participants will have the ability to change their mind and choose one of the lung cancer screening options in between their annual screening discussion.

Recruiting Locations

University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa 52242
Contact:
Laura Seegmiller
(319) 384-1494
champ-study@uiowa.edu

Cedar Valley Primary Care & Walk-In Clinic
Waterloo, Iowa 50701
Contact:
Sarah Larson, BSN, RN
319-888-8270
slarson@cvmspc.com

Greenwood Pharmacy and Compounding Center
Waterloo, Iowa 50702
Contact:
Robert Nichols, PharmD, BCPS

More Details

Status
Recruiting
Sponsor
Jill Kolesar

Study Contact

Laura Seegmiller
(319) 384-1494
champ-study@uiowa.edu

Detailed Description

The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends annual lung cancer screening (LCS) with low dose Computerized Tomography (CT) scans for adults aged 50-80 with a 20-pack year smoking history who are current smokers or who have quit within the last 15 years. Despite these recommendations and Medicaid/Medicare coverage, only about 17% of eligible patients were screened in Iowa in 2024. Barriers to implementing LCS are multifactorial and include patient and clinician barriers, specifically complexity of screening and primary care physician competing demands. To overcome these barriers, investigators propose a two-part intervention: first, a blood test, that reduces the complexity of lung cancer screening and second, a community pharmacist referral program that can be performed as part of routine care received in the pharmacy. LCS eligible participants will be identified in Greenwood Pharmacy in Waterloo, Iowa and invited to participate in a lung cancer screening study. If they are interested, the pharmacist will review the consent form with them, explaining the study and answering any questions they have. After the consent is signed, the participant will engage in a shared decision-making conversation about LCS with the pharmacist. As part of this conversation, patients will be told they are eligible for LCS and given three options: Decline to participate; agree to participate and get DELFI blood test; or agree to participate but decline blood test and pursue a CT scan with their PCP. Patients agreeable to the blood test will be referred to Cedar Valley Family Medicine, where they can receive the DELFI FirstLook Lung Cancer Screening Test. Those with a positive (elevated) blood test will have a standard of care clinic appointment with the primary care physician at Cedar Valley Family Medicine for a shared decision-making visit about LCS and if warranted, order confirmatory CT scanning which is standard of care and billed to the study. Patients with a negative blood test will be added to the "Screening Cohort" and approached annually for a total of 2 years to participate in screening.