Australia’s lung cancer screening promise at risk

Australia’s new National Lung Cancer Screening Program could dramatically improve survival rates for the nation’s deadliest cancer, but only if urgent investment strengthens lung cancer services across the country, according to new research published in the Medical Journal of Australia.

Lead author Professor Fraser Brims from the Institute for Respiratory Health outlines what must happen next to make sure the screening program delivers real change for patients.

The National Lung Cancer Screening Program launched in July 2025 and aims to detect lung cancer earlier in people at high risk. Finding lung cancer early can make a life-saving difference.

“Detecting lung cancer early can lift five-year survival to almost 70 per cent compared with less than five per cent for advanced disease,” Professor Brims said.

“The screening program is a major step forward. But screening does not save lives on its own. What happens after diagnosis is just as important.”

Lung cancer remains Australia’s leading cause of cancer death. It claims more lives each year than breast and bowel cancer combined, and more than 15,000 Australians were diagnosed in 2025.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples continue to experience lung cancer at around twice the rate of non-Indigenous Australians.

The research highlights serious gaps in lung cancer care that risk limiting the impact of screening.

A recent national survey found that only 41 per cent of institutions treating lung cancer reported having the recommended core multidisciplinary workforce. Around half do not have specialist lung cancer nurses despite strong evidence that these roles improve survival and reduce hospital admissions

Many centres, particularly outside metropolitan areas, also face limited access to specialist surgeons, advanced diagnostic testing and personalised treatments such as next-generation sequencing.

Professor Brims said this means that where someone lives can influence the care they receive.

“We cannot allow postcode to determine outcome,” he said.

“The culture needs to change. We must set the standard of care based on what patients need rather than what existing infrastructure allows. We need innovation, not compromise.”

The paper also calls for a national lung cancer clinical quality registry to sit alongside the screening program.

Australia currently does not have a coordinated national data system to track how lung cancer is diagnosed and treated. A national registry would benchmark hospitals, identify gaps in care, and provide near real-time feedback to drive improvement.

“It would allow us to measure what matters and act on it,” Professor Brims said.

“It would link screening with treatment and outcomes and help ensure the benefits of early detection translate into better survival and better quality of life.”

Lung cancer is projected to cost the Australian economy $8.3 billion each year by 2031, yet it continues to receive far less research funding than other cancers with a similar burden.

Professor Brims said the screening program presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to improve lung cancer outcomes in Australia. “But we must invest in services, workforce data, and research,” he said.

“With coordinated national action, we can change the story for lung cancer. Without it, we risk missing the full promise of screening. Now is the time to act.”

The paper, National screening, national responsibility: turning promise into progress for lung cancer care, is available to view here.

Media contact:
Andrea Jones
Institute for Respiratory Health
Mobile: 0450613460
Email: andrea.jones@uwa.edu.au