Today, following Decision Report by the Welsh Government, the Minister for Health and Social Services has agreed to scoping work to develop a targeted lung cancer screening programme in Wales.
Judi Rhys MBE, Chief Executive at Tenovus Cancer Care, said:
After tirelessly lobbying since the recommendation was made 18 months ago, we positively welcome the latest update on the development to start scoping of targeted lung cancer screening for Wales. A comprehensive lung cancer screening programme, when implemented will save hundreds of lives.
Lung cancer is the biggest cancer killer in Wales and too many people die because of late diagnosis. Yet, despite its seriousness, a lung cancer diagnosis doesn’t always lead to death. When caught early, survivability is dramatically improved, and this has been demonstrated by a number of UK and international trials and pilots.
While this is a big step, there is still a long way to go. We lag way behind England, which has carried out lung health checks on tens of thousands of patients, detecting cancer at an earlier and far more treatable stage.”
