Hull grandparents champion stop smoking support after benefitting from life-changing research study

A couple from Hull are raising awareness about the life-changing benefits of becoming smokefree after taking part in a pioneering clinical trial that helped them both successfully quit smoking.

Through the YorQuit study, funded by Yorkshire Cancer Research, grandparents Linda Brown and Terry Osborne were offered stop smoking support after receiving a lung scan and are now sharing their experience to highlight the difference this approach can make to people across the region. 

New data published this month shows the smoking rate in Yorkshire remains the highest in England, with around half a million adults who smoke. Since 2024, the proportion of people who smoke in the region has fallen from 12.2% to 11.3%, however, this decrease is at a slower pace than the national average.  

Led by Professor Rachael Murray and delivered by researchers at the University of Nottingham, University of York and Cardiff University, the YorQuit study is a clinical trial investigating the most effective ways to help people quit smoking following a lung health check through the NHS targeted lung cancer screening programme.

Launched in 2024, the YorQuit trial aims to involve around 2,000 people who would like to stop or reduce their smoking by testing different methods to help them quit, including using a digital app, telephone calls from a specialist advisor and offers of incentives. So far, the trial has provided vital support to hundreds of people in Hull, Bradford and Manchester, and will shortly expand to Leeds. 

Researchers hope to identify the most successful stop smoking strategies, helping to shape future NHS policies that can have the greatest impact on reducing cancer risk and saving lives.

In January 2026, partners of 30 years Linda and Terry were among those invited to take part in the study after attending a lung health check in Hull. Both had smoked since they were young. 

Terry said: "My father and my grandfather were fishermen, and in our community, everyone smoked, whether it was down at the docks, the pub or in the home. I was 12 when I began taking spare papers from my dad's drawer so I could roll my own tobacco. It was just part of growing up.”

Linda added: "I also smoked my first cigarette when I was 12. It was the girl next door who invited me to come along to the youth club and meet her friends, where they all encouraged me to give it a go. It horrifies me now to think I started so young, but back then, we didn't understand how damaging smoking could be to our health.”

Smoking tobacco remains the largest cause of preventable illness. It contains harmful chemicals which enter the bloodstream and affect the entire body, making it responsible for at least 16 different types of cancer, including lung cancer.  

Hull has the highest smoking rate of anywhere in the country, with 1 in 5 adults who smoke. Sadly, more people in Hull are diagnosed with and die from lung cancer than anywhere else in Yorkshire.  

The YorQuit study aims to show how combining stop smoking support with lung cancer screening can help address these inequalities. By reaching communities with higher smoking rates, this approach can help ensure those who have an increased risk of developing cancer can access the stop smoking support they need.

After receiving their lung health check, Linda and Terry were given the opportunity to take part in YorQuit to test one of several stop smoking support approaches being offered through the trial while receiving guidance from a specialist team. For both of them, signing up to the study wasn’t their first attempt to quit.

Linda explained: "Terry tried for two months in his early 40s and in 2024, I managed to go 51 days smokefree. However, we both had a very hard time with the withdrawal symptoms, and neither of us had access to the right support to keep us going. I was pulled back into the habit when my sister became very ill.”

Having experienced problems with her health, Linda was immediately interested in taking part in the YorQuit study and Terry was determined to join her.

Linda said: “My coughing used to keep me up at night, and I found it very difficult to clear my throat, no matter how many times I tried. I'd been having trouble with the circulation in my leg, and even had pneumonia, which was really scary.”  

The YorQuit study builds on nearly a decade of innovative research funded by Yorkshire Cancer Research which is finding new and better ways to prevent and detect cancer. The Yorkshire Lung Screening Trial, delivered in partnership with Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and the University of Leeds, provided thousands of life-saving lung health checks to communities across Leeds and helped pave the way for the NHS national lung cancer screening programme.  

Research shows people are up to three times more likely to quit for good with specialist behavioural support and stop smoking treatment. Linda and Terry were both assigned to a research group receiving regular telephone support from a dedicated team of stop smoking advisors, alongside access to stop smoking aids. In her group, Linda was also given a voucher designed as an incentive to quit. 

Linda said: "The first few days using the vape were challenging, but with the support of the advisor, it did get easier and easier. Both Terry and I started on the highest nicotine dose, and after 13 weeks we went down to the lowest one. Finding the right support and the right treatment was absolutely key."

Linda continued: "I understand why the incentive might help encourage some people to quit, but for me, the calls from the advisor were the biggest factor in helping me succeed.” 

Yorkshire Cancer Research funds £6.3 million of stop smoking research and services in the region, which also includes its own free personalised specialist service to help anyone who is looking to quit for good. Since 2015, more than 6,000 people in Yorkshire have successfully quit smoking thanks to research and services funded by the charity.  

Dr Stuart Griffiths, Director of Research, Policy and Impact, said: “Sadly, nearly 3,000 people in Yorkshire die from a smoking-related cancer every year. That’s why Yorkshire Cancer Research is committed to helping Yorkshire become smokefree. 

Ten months after Linda and Terry stopped smoking, the couple are experiencing many benefits with their health and wellbeing. Happily retired and living in the village of Halsham, East Yorkshire, they spend their time gardening, enjoying family life and making memories with their two grandchildren. 

Terry said: "Physical activity used to make me quite breathless, but now I feel fitter and more energised. It's been very helpful the last few months while we've been moving house!"

Linda said: "Now I've stopped smoking, I no longer wheeze when I'm going to sleep. I lay down at night and I breathe easy. We've both been exercising a lot more too, going to the gym to swim and cycle. One of my hobbies is making big cement pots out in the garden, so I've been feeling less tired while doing what I love." 

Linda and Terry's achievement has additionally become one celebrated by the whole family. 

Terry said: "With my newfound energy, I was able to put up a new shed in the garden with our grandson. Being smokefree is already giving us those lovely days together."

Linda concluded: "Seeing how proud our grandchildren are now we've quit smoking means everything to me. Family is the most important thing to us, and thanks to Yorkshire Cancer Research and the YorQuit stop smoking study, we're going to be able to make more memories together. If you’re invited to take part in the study, I’d strongly encourage you to give it a go. We’ve done something we never imagined to be possible.”

Professor Rachael Murray, Chief Investigator on the YorQuit study said: "The prevalence of lung cancer in Yorkshire remains far too high, which is why it's so important we make lung screening and stop smoking support an integrated package."