Congratulations to Professor Charles Swanton and his team on the publication of ground-breaking research in Cell that could transform how lung cancer is prevented.

The study, led by researchers at the Francis Crick Institute and University College London (UCL), has identified a 14-protein signature in the blood that can predict a person’s risk of developing lung cancer more than five years before diagnosis.

Lung cancer remains one of the world’s deadliest cancers, in part because it is often diagnosed at a late stage when treatment options are more limited. The ability to identify individuals at increased risk long before symptoms appear could open the door to a new era of cancer prevention.

Using machine learning and blood plasma data from more than 48,000 participants in the UK Biobank study, the researchers discovered a set of proteins linked to an inflammatory state in the lungs that appears to precede the development of cancer. The findings were subsequently validated across eight independent datasets from around the world, demonstrating the robustness of the approach.

Importantly, the research builds on previous work from Professor Swanton’s team showing how environmental factors such as air pollution can trigger inflammation that encourages dormant cells carrying cancer-causing mutations to become active. Rather than detecting cancer once it has formed, the newly identified protein signature offers a way to identify those at greatest risk before the disease takes hold.

The study also provides encouraging evidence that this knowledge could be translated into prevention. By analysing data from the CANTOS clinical trial, the researchers found that individuals with a high-risk protein signature appeared to benefit significantly from treatment with an anti-inflammatory drug targeting IL-1β, with lung cancer risk almost halved in this group.

Together, these findings represent an important step towards precision cancer prevention – identifying the right people for the right intervention at the right time. Much as cholesterol testing and statins have transformed the prevention of cardiovascular disease, this work raises the possibility of future strategies that could help prevent lung cancer before it develops.

Rosetrees is delighted to have supported Professor Swanton’s research and to contribute to innovative science that advances our understanding of disease and has the potential to improve outcomes for patients worldwide.

We extend our congratulations to Professor Swanton and all the researchers and collaborators involved in this remarkable achievement.

Read the paper

Pandya T., Zagorulya M., Leung M., Augustine M., et al. (2026). Plasma signals of lung tumour promotion stratify benefit for molecular cancer prevention. Cell.

Paper available here:
https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(26)00522-2