Improving Lung Cancer Outcomes

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:01 pm on 23 October 2018.

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Photo of Julie James Julie James Labour 2:01, 23 October 2018

We have some really interesting things happening in in this field, actually. The Welsh Government, like the rest of the UK, follows the expert advice of the UK National Screening Committee. The UKNSC does not currently recommend routine asymptomatic screening for lung cancer, but we are due to review the policy after the results of the NELSON randomised lung cancer screening trial are published. If that recommendation is for screening for lung cancer, the Wales screening committee will consider how this can be appropriately implemented in Wales, with a view to speeding up the screening. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommends the primary investigation for suspected lung cancer is an urgent chest x-ray for people aged 40 and over with defined unexplained symptoms, and GPs are aware of this.