Summary of codes describing individuals’ perceptions of transnasal endoscopy, ingestible cell collection devices, and breath analysis
| Codes | Exemplary quotes | |
| Transnasal endoscopy | From some to high (anticipated) discomfort | They can numb the nose, so that the tingle in the nose is gone. (FG5, female, 69 years, no BO) I personally had a test to examine my vocal cords, which also goes through your nose and reaches quite far back. I actually didn't find that too burdensome. (FG3, female, 53 years, no BO) I mean, it won’t make the gagging any better or worse, right? (FG2, female, 53 years, no BO) Honestly, well, I’ll get through it with gritted teeth, but I dread it more than via the mouth. (FG7, male, 74 years, BO) |
| Organisational implications | Yes, I think you would need more staff with a test via the mouth than via the nose. I think the one via the nose can be done by one person. (FG7, female, 68 years, BO) The person who examines it must be able to judge it very well. (FG1, female, 69 years, BO) This way you pre-select, because you can’t perform population-based screening in a hospital, that is simply not possible. But maybe it’s doable with a mobile unit. And if nothing is detected, you don’t have to go to hospital. So I think it decreases the burden on health care. (FG2, male, 75 years, no BO) | |
| No surplus for the public | What’s the improvement? That it is five millimetres? It still goes down your throat. It first goes through your nose and instead of undergoing it once you may have to do it twice. The difference is in the sedation. I wonder, is that really a considerable improvement? (FG1, female, 59 years, BO) ‘A simple test’, I mean something else by that. (FG6, male, 50 years, no BO) | |
| Ingestible cell collection device | From no to high anticipated discomfort | Just imagine it’s a delicious piece of candy, and it’ll go right down. All done. Right? (FG4, male, 69 years, no BO) I assume that it is the same as taking your pills. (FG2, male, 55 years, no BO) I’m not convinced. I think that the piece of string in your throat, which is something that shouldn’t be there, will automatically cause a lot of irritation and gagging. It’s like when the dentist uses a mirror to check your molars and he gets close… (FG2, male, 75 years, no BO) Unpleasant. (FG5, male, 72 years, no BO) People will pull that thing out in no time. So from my experience, I'm really like: this isn't going to work. (FG5, female, 69 years, no BO) |
| Worries about the procedure | But if that has to go up through your throat, that will close things off for a while. (FG3, female, 53 years, no BO) I’m just thinking: how can you swallow a 2 cm long, how wide is it, a centimeter in circumference? How could you get that down your throat? (FG5, male, 60 years, no BO) It also has an adhesive effect. To what extent does your voice, what are they called, do the vibrating fibres of your voice stick to it? Your vocal cords are made up of very fine fibres. To what extent do they stick to the sponge when you retrieve it and thus possibly damage your voice? (FG2, male, 75 years, no BO) But that piece of string, I don't know, if I swallow, how far does that medicine get into the oesophagus on the first swallow? Will it drop down by itself, also past my valve? (FG7, male, 70 years, no BO) That pill can get stuck halfway, and you’ll be like: I can't get it any further. (FG5, female, 63 years, BO) Well, if the piece of string snaps, I don't know where I'd rather be. (FG3, female, 50 years, no BO) | |
| Thoroughness | Yeah, I think, that cancer, Yeah, I still think that the cancer starts in a certain place. And that sponge, yeah, it scrapes cells along with it, but it may miss the cancerous cells. So that would be a missed opportunity. (FG7, male, 74 years, BO) | |
| Breath analysis | Least burdensome | If I get to choose, let me see, what would I find the most comfortable? That would of course be the breath test, that’s true. But, you know, I find accuracy more important. (FG3, female, 57 years, BO) There is less risk of damage. The other tests can all cause damage, taking a biopsy, if something is just a little off. (FG2, female, 67 years, no BO) |
| Convenience | In principle it is a good method, because it is probably quite affordable, you should also consider that. (FG7, male, 74 years, BO) Because it is easily accessible, you can even do it at the GP’s office. (FG4, male, 53 years, no BO) | |
| Accuracy is a prerequisite | I'm not thrilled by such a test, let’s put it that way. Look, if the GP says: 'just breathe into this device ’, then you’ll do that. But I won't be reassured after I hear: 'there’s nothing wrong'. So that’s a real issue. In the end, you want to tell people, well, 'certainty' is a big word, but you still want to relay results in a reliable way. I'm not eager to participate with this test. (FG4, male, 52 years, no BO) If it isn’t reliable, I’m sorry to say, but then it’s completely useless. (FG2, female, 67 years, no BO) | |
| Understanding | Is this for oesophageal cancer or is it also for that… now I've forgotten the term again, that Barrett? (FG4, male, 53 years, no BO) I was curious actually: what does it measure? The stomach acid or something? The acidity of the stomach? Blood spatters? (FG8, male, 65 years, no BO) Okay, so you could measure whether you have oesophageal cancer via your lungs… Even though that is another system, right? (FG5, female, 62 years, no BO) |
BO, Barrett’s oesophagus; FG, focus group; GP, general practitioner.