Impact of Lung Cancer Screening With Chest Scans Combined With Coaching on Smoking Cessation in Heavy Smokers

October 16, 2026 updated by: Philippe Khafagy, Hôpital Fribourgeois

Smoking Termination Outcomes With Pulmonary Low Dose Computed Tomography for Lung Cancer Screening (STOP-LungCancer)

Lung cancer is common and serious, but when detected early, the chances of recovery are significantly better. Tobacco use is the leading cause. To help people break free from smoking, the Fribourg Cantonal Hospital (HFR), the Center for Tobacco Prevention (CIPRET), and the Fribourg Cancer League are joining forces in the STOP-LungCancer study (Smoking Termination Outcomes with Pulmonary Low Dose Computed Tomography for Lung Cancer Screening).

What is the goal of this study? The investigators want to determine whether seeing and understanding images of the participants' own lungs helps participants quit smoking for good. Smoking cessation will be verified at 6 months using a breath test (measuring carbon monoxide), followed by a 2-year follow-up.

How does participation work? The study is open to 116 residents of the canton of Fribourg aged 50 to 79 who are heavy smokers and motivated to quit.

The program includes:

  1. Personalized support: 4 smoking cessation coaching sessions organized by CIPRET.
  2. Lung computed tomography (CT) scans: 3 exams spaced one year apart. This scan involves no needles or injections. The radiation dose is very low, about 0.6 millisieverts (mSv) per scan, and the associated risk is considered very low.
  3. A review of the images with a doctor: During dedicated consultations, a thoracic radiologist reviews the participant's own computed tomography (CT) scans with the participant to explain the condition of the lungs and heart.

What are the benefits? Participants receive both tailored support to quit smoking and close monitoring to detect any potential issues at a very early stage.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
116

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Switzerland
    • Canton of Fribourg
      • Fribourg, Canton of Fribourg, Switzerland, 1700
        • Fribourg Cantonal Hospital (HFR)
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

50 years to 79 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Residence in the canton of Fribourg
  • Willingness to quit smoking
  • Current smoker: > or = 20 packs years

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Previous diagnosis of cancer
  • Major medical problems (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group, ECOG ≥ 2)
  • Chest computed tomography (CT) scan in the last 12 months
  • Hemoptysis or unintentional weight loss > 7 kilograms (kg) in the last year
  • Pregnancy
  • Refusal to be informed of incidental findings of medical importance

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Combined Low-Dose Computed Tomography Screening and Smoking Cessation Coaching

Single-arm experimental cohort of heavy smokers undergoing an integrated lung cancer screening and smoking cessation pathway. All enrolled participants receive the combined intervention strategy, which pairs personalized chest computed tomography (CT) imaging results with dedicated specialist counseling and structured behavioral smoking cessation support. This arm aims to evaluate how visual radiological feedback combined with tobacco cessation counseling impacts long-term smoking abstinence rates.
Behavioral: Image-Based Counseling

Face-to-face physician consultations where a thoracic radiologist reviews the participant's own computed tomography (CT) scans with the participant to explain lung and cardiovascular health, creating a visual "teachable moment".

Behavioral: Smoking Cessation Coaching

Four structured behavioral counseling sessions delivered by certified tobacco cessation experts of the Center for Tobacco Prevention (CIPRET), personalized to support long-term abstinence.

Other Names:
  • Smoking Cessation Counselling
Radiation: Low-Dose Chest Computed Tomography (LDCT)

Low-dose chest computed tomography (LDCT) scans without intravenous contrast at baseline, 12 months, and 24 months, and additional follow-up LDCT when indicated by the screening result (Lung Computed Tomography Screening Reporting and Data System [Lung-RADS] category 3).

Other Names:
  • lung cancer screening (LCS)

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
6-Month Smoking Abstinence Rate
Time Frame: 6 months after the first chest computed tomography (CT)

Proportion of participants who achieve smoking abstinence at 6 months after the first chest computed tomography (CT). Abstinence is self-reported and objectively validated using exhaled carbon monoxide (CO) measurement.
6 months after the first chest computed tomography (CT)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Smoking Abstinence Rate at 12 Months
Time Frame: 12 months after the first chest computed tomography

Proportion of participants reporting smoking abstinence at the 12-month visit, confirmed by exhaled carbon monoxide (CO) measurement.
12 months after the first chest computed tomography
Smoking Abstinence Rate at 24 Months
Time Frame: 24 months after the first chest computed tomography

Proportion of participants reporting smoking abstinence at the 24-month visit, confirmed by exhaled carbon monoxide (CO) measurement.
24 months after the first chest computed tomography
Detection Rate of Lung Nodules and Lung Cancer
Time Frame: Baseline, 12 months, and 24 months

Proportion of participants with positive low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) findings requiring further diagnostic follow-up or tissue biopsy, categorized according to the standardized Lung Computed Tomography Screening Reporting and Data System (Lung-RADS) assessment categories.
Baseline, 12 months, and 24 months
Prevalence of Relevant Incidental Findings on Chest Computed Tomography
Time Frame: Baseline, 12 months, and 24 months

Proportion of relevant non-lung-nodule incidental findings detected on low-dose chest computed tomography, such as smoking-related lung disease, cardiac abnormalities and other findings unrelated to smoking.
Baseline, 12 months, and 24 months
Factors Potentially Influencing Smoking Cessation Success
Time Frame: At baseline

Exploratory analysis evaluating demographics such as age, sex, place of residence, socioeconomical class, and other factors such as smoking-related lung disease, and cardiac abnormalities. These analyses are exploratory in nature and are intended to generate hypotheses for future studies. No definitive causal inference will be drawn from these analyses.
At baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Hôpital Fribourgeois

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
CIPRET Fribourg (Centre d'information pour la prévention du tabagisme)

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Philippe Khafagy, MD, Hôpital Fribourgeois
  • Principal Investigator: Jon Lutz, MD, Hôpital Fribourgeois

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 1, 2027

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 30, 2031

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 31, 2032

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
September 30, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 30, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
October 6, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
October 21, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 16, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
October 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • BASEC-2026-01995

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data will not be made publicly available to protect participant privacy and maintain confidentiality in accordance with Swiss regulatory requirements (Human Research Act and Federal Act on Data Protection). Aggregated data and primary results will be available in peer-reviewed scientific publications.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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