Lung cancer screening

About targeted lung cancer screening

Lung cancer is one of the most common cancers in the UK, but outcomes are consistently poor. One reason for this is that people are often diagnosed at a late stage, where there are fewer treatment options available. Across the health sector, there is a desire to improve lung cancer outcomes, but this is complex and needs to be tackled using different approaches.

In 2022, the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) recommended introducing a targeted lung cancer screening programme across the UK. The UK NSC review included data from a large European trial (NELSON) that used low-dose computerised tomography (CT) scans to screen individuals at increased risk of developing lung cancer. This trial showed a mortality reduction in high-risk individuals who received a low-dose CT scan.

In June 2023, the Government announced the national roll out of a targeted lung cancer screening programme in England. People aged 55 to 74 with a GP record including a history of smoking will be assessed and invited for screening and smoking cessation services.

This rollout follows the success of the first phase of the Targeted Lung Health Check (TLHC) scheme by NHS England with 76% of lung cancers in those tested diagnosed at an earlier stage.

NHS England will be rolling out the programme, with a focus on reaching 40% of the eligible population by 2025 and plans to reach 100% coverage by March 2030. Once fully rolled out, it is expected to detect cancer in as many as 9,000 people and deliver almost one million scans every year as well as ensuring treatment can be provided treatment earlier.

There are ongoing lung health check pilots taking place in Scotland and Wales.

Information and articles

• Supporting the earlier diagnosis of lung cancer

• Lung cancer statistics

• Our analysis on the UK NSC recommendation

• Our analysis on the NELSON trial

• Our analysis on the rollout of targeted lung cancer screening in England

How screening works

Step: 1

Patient invitation

People aged 55 to 74 with a GP record including a history of smoking will be invited for an initial assessment.

GPs can support lung screening by ensuring that smoking history is accurately recorded within their patient records to ensure that all eligible patients are invited to a TLHC.

Step: 2

Initial assessment

The initial assessment will involve the participant answering questions to determine if they are at a high risk of lung cancer.

If they are, they will then be offered a low dose CT scan of the lungs. Smoking cessation support will also be offered for those who need it.

Step: 3

Low dose CT scan

A low dose CT scan helps to check for changes in the lungs that may be lung cancer.

The scan creates detailed pictures of the lungs from different angles to form a 3D image.

Step: 4

Outcome

If somebody has suspected lung cancer, they will be referred for diagnostic tests as soon as possible.

If other abnormalities are found, they may be invited to screening more regularly.

Other ways to improve outcomes

Where TLHCs are available, not everyone invited to initial assessment will meet the threshold for low dose CT. Therefore, GPs will continue to have a crucial role in the diagnosis of lung cancer.

Resources designed to support GPs diagnose lung cancer early:

• GP Insights for England and Wales(PDF)

• GP Insight for Northern Ireland

• GP Insight for Scotland(PDF)

For further information, visit our supporting the earlier diagnosis of lung cancer page.

Other lung screening activity

As well as the projects funded as part of the NHS England TLHC programme, there’s also other activity happening in the NHS such as in Manchester and Liverpool where eligible people in the local population are being invited to attend a lung cancer health check.

There’s also ongoing research activity, including the Yorkshire Lung Screening Trial which is adding to the evidence base around the feasibility of a lung screening programme and SUMMIT, which aims to evaluate a blood test designed to detect multiple types of cancer, including lung cancer.

Information for the public

Find out what lung cancer is, the symptoms to look out for and how it can be treated.