Screening for chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML)

There is no national screening programme for chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML). This is because there isn’t a test that can pick up CML at an early stage.

What is cancer screening?

Screening means testing people for early stages of a disease. This is before they have any symptoms. For screening to be useful the tests:

• need to be reliable at picking up cancers
• overall must do more good than harm to people taking part
• must be something that people are willing to do

Screening tests are not perfect and have some risks. The screening programme should also be good value for money for the NHS.

Why there isn’t a screening programme for CML in the UK?

There is no national screening programme for CML in the UK at the moment because:

• doctors wouldn't find many cancers because it's rare
• there is no suitable test to use for CML screening
• the cost of screening would be high

With rare cancers, it is more cost effective to screen people who are thought to be at a higher risk. Talk to your GP if you think you are at a higher than average risk of CML. If your doctor agrees that you are at a higher risk, they may be able to give you regular check ups.