Prepare for SCE Respiratory Medicine, one question at a time.

Choose a topic for focused revision and check your plan against the official specification.

• COPD — diagnosis, GOLD groups, triple therapy, exacerbation management, NIV
• Asthma — diagnosis, biologic eligibility (anti-IgE, anti-IL5/5R, anti-TSLP), severe asthma
• Lung cancer — staging (TNM 9th), driver mutations, IO, RT/surgical pathways
• Interstitial lung disease — IPF (nintedanib, pirfenidone), CTD-ILD, fibrotic non-IPF
• Pulmonary infection — pneumonia (CAP/HAP/VAP), TB (overlap with ID), bronchiectasis, fungal
• Pulmonary vascular disease — PE, PH classification, group 1 PAH therapy, CTEPH
• Sleep medicine — OSA, central apnoea, CPAP titration, hypoventilation syndromes
• Pleural disease — effusion workup, mesothelioma, pneumothorax (BTS 2023)
• Occupational and environmental lung disease — asbestos, silicosis, hypersensitivity pneumonitis
• Cystic fibrosis (incl. CFTR modulators) and non-CF bronchiectasis
• Respiratory failure and ventilatory support — NIV, HFNO, weaning, home ventilation
• Statistics, ethics, professional behaviours, EBM in respiratory
• Rare lung disease — LAM, PAP, alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, sarcoidosis

Use the current curriculum and primary guidance to review these clinical decisions.

• COPD — use the current GOLD report and NICE NG115 to review diagnosis, symptom and exacerbation assessment, inhaled treatment choices and ventilatory support
• Asthma — BTS/NICE/SIGN NG245 covers diagnosis, monitoring and chronic management. Review severe-asthma biologic eligibility separately against current specialist guidance and NICE technology appraisals
• Lung cancer — check the current TNM staging edition, molecular testing and treatment pathways against contemporary oncology guidance
• IPF and progressive pulmonary fibrosis — antifibrotic eligibility (FVC thresholds), CT-HRCT pattern recognition (UIP, NSIP, OP), CTD-ILD screening (anti-MDA5 in dermatomyositis, anti-Scl-70 in SSc), recent CHEST/ATS PPF guidance
• Pulmonary embolism — ESC/ERS guidance on acute PE: risk stratification, reperfusion decisions, anticoagulation and suitability for outpatient care
• OSA — STOP-BANG, AHI thresholds for CPAP, central vs obstructive apnoea, complex sleep apnoea on initiation. Hypoventilation syndromes (OHS, motor neurone disease, neuromuscular)
• CFTR modulators — elexacaftor-tezacaftor-ivacaftor (ETI/Trikafta/Kaftrio), age and mutation eligibility, monitoring (LFTs, mental health), implications for transplant listing
• Pleural disease BTS 2023 update — pneumothorax conservative management, malignant pleural effusion (IPC vs talc), septated empyema (intra-pleural tPA-DNase per MIST-2), mesothelioma staging

Review these distinctions against current BTS, NICE and GOLD guidance.

Revision prompts; consult the relevant primary guidance for current recommendations.

1. Asthma guidance — joint BTS/NICE/SIGN NG245 was published in November 2024. Its scope is diagnosis, monitoring and chronic management; severe asthma and acute attacks require separate guidance. Identify the population and setting before applying a recommendation.
2. Lung cancer staging — check which TNM edition a revision resource uses before comparing stage groups or treatment pathways. Avoid combining staging definitions from different editions.
3. Asthma biologic sequencing — confusing anti-IL-5 (mepolizumab) vs anti-IL-5R (benralizumab) vs anti-IL-4Rα (dupilumab) and their eligibility criteria. Atopic vs eosinophilic vs T2-high distinction commonly muddled.
4. CFTR modulators — eligibility extended over time. ETI now licensed down to age 2 in some jurisdictions; recognition of side effects (mental health monitoring, hepatotoxicity) is examined.
5. Pleural disease — the BTS 2023 pleural guideline replaced 2010 guidance. Pneumothorax conservative management, malignant pleural effusion IPC pathway, MIST-2 intrapleural therapy.
6. PFTs — practise obstructive, restrictive and mixed patterns, KCO/TLCO interpretation and bronchodilator reversibility using authoritative worked examples.
7. NIV vs HFNO vs invasive ventilation — indications, AHRF thresholds, contraindications. Hypercapnic COPD bilevel pressures.
8. Statistics in respiratory trials — distinguish primary endpoints, absolute effects and applicability to the patient described. Review studies such as IMPACT, INPULSIS, INBUILD and ETHOS in context.

An example schedule to adapt to your sitting, rota and study time.

1. Weeks 1–6

   Foundation pass across all 13 blueprint topics. 30 questions/day with the iatroX adaptive engine. Build PFT and HRCT pattern recognition early and review current authoritative respiratory guidance alongside weak topics.

2. Weeks 7–11

   Revisit topics behind incorrect answers. Compare joint BTS/NICE/SIGN NG245, current GOLD COPD guidance, BTS pleural guidance and ESC/ERS pulmonary embolism guidance with the clinical setting in each question.

3. Weeks 12–14

   Two timed 200-SBA mock exams under exam conditions weekly. Practise HRCT pattern recognition (UIP/NSIP/OP/HP/sarcoidosis) and PFT interpretation under time pressure. Sleep trace pattern recognition.

4. Weeks 15–16

   Review bookmarked questions and the guidance behind recurring mistakes. Check current staging, treatment eligibility and medicine safety information. Confirm your exam-centre booking and travel arrangements.

Dedicated SCE Respiratory Medicine question practice with answer explanations, guided Tutor review and study planning.

• Focused question practice — Choose the relevant bank and use your answers to identify what to study next.
• Guided reasoning — Explore a difficult answer with Tutor, then apply the distinction independently.
• Review and timed practice — Return to important mistakes and choose a timed practice set where available.

Choose the relevant bank and use the official exam guidance to plan your preparation.

Use the dedicated SCE Respiratory Medicine bank for question practice and answer explanations. Choose a practice set to see its available count and timing, then use the official specification to plan your wider preparation.

Next SCE Respiratory Medicine sitting: 9 June 2027. Applications: 17 February 2027–17 March 2027. Applications open and close at 08:00 UK local time. Confirm booking and delivery arrangements with the Federation.

Two papers of 100 best-of-five SBAs each, three hours per paper, sat on the same day with a one-hour break between. Total 200 questions. From June 2026 all sittings are in-centre at Pearson VUE locations.

Most UK trainees sit during ST5 or ST6 (penultimate year of higher specialty training). There are no formal restrictions on when in training you sit, but CCT requires a pass before completion. International candidates can sit at any time once registered with the Federation.

UK fee is £700; international fee is £875. Fees are non-refundable after the application closing date. From June 2026 all sittings are delivered in-centre at Pearson VUE locations.

Pair question practice with authoritative visual resources for chest radiographs, HRCT patterns, lung-function traces and sleep studies. Explain the finding, its differential diagnosis and its effect on management before checking the worked interpretation.

Full SCE Respiratory Medicine bank access is included in all-access. Up to 10 new sample questions per day are shared across exams, with no account required. A verified free account includes one guided Tutor session; continued Tutor use is included in all-access.