SONNET: Study Of Novel eNdometrial cancEr diagnosTics
Research type
Research Study
Full title
SONNET: Study Of Novel eNdometrial cancEr diagnosTics. Prospective observational study of novel diagnostic tools for suspected endometrial cancer
IRAS ID
361257
Contact name
Emma J Davidson
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The University of Manchester
Duration of Study in the UK
4 years, 2 months, 5 days
Research summary
Post menopausal bleeding (PMB) is the red flag symptom of womb cancer. Urgent investigations may include internal vaginal scan, camera test of the womb and/or biopsy. These tests are invasive and can cause anxiety, pain, bleeding and infection. Only ~5% of people investigated for PMB are diagnosed with womb cancer.
We are developing a new patient-friendly tool, PREDICT EC, to help doctors identify who really needs these tests to rule out womb cancer, and who can be safely reassured without them. PREDICT-EC, uses patient demographics, clinical factors, symptoms, scan results and a simple urine test, to produce a risk prediction score for womb cancer.
The tool could reduce the number of people undergoing unnecessary tests, improve patient experience and help detect cancer earlier. This study will look at how accurate the tools is. We’re recruiting 3,000 people referred with PMB from gynaecology clinics across hospitals in England, Wales and Scotland. Participants will be asked to complete questionnaires, provide medical information and a urine sample. Most participants will complete the study in one day, some may provide further information or samples at follow on clinical visits.
This 5 year programme will see how well the tool works across people from different backgrounds and types of womb cancer and pre-cancer. We will look at current NHS resources and costs, what patients and experts think of the tool and design a digital clinician-facing calculator to generate PREDICT-EC scores.
Further research will include investigating two additional triage tools; (1) Spectroscopy, which predicts whether or not there is an underlying cancer from blood or urine; and (2) WID®-easy, which tests for methylated genes in DNA collected from the vagina using a swab. This analysis will be enabled if participants are happy to provide an optional blood and vaginal swab sample.REC name
London - Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
26/LO/0259
Date of REC Opinion
29 Apr 2026
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion