01-07-2025
Lung cancer screening gets underway
Isabella Higgins: Australia's new lung cancer screening program gets underway this month. Under the scheme, those with a strong history of smoking aged between 50 and 70 may be eligible for bulk build scans. Now a large trial is underway to see if more people would benefit from screening, including non-smokers. Emma Pollard has this report.
Emma Pollard: Artist and teacher Nicole Ives was about to leave hospital after having appendicitis when medics made a chance discovery.
Nicole Ives : They found a lump in my lung and there was a high probability that it was lung cancer.
Emma Pollard: It was a shock. The 57-year-old had no symptoms and had never smoked.
Nicole Ives : Because they did such a great job educating us about lung cancer and smoking, you know for someone like me who never smoked, you know I probably really wouldn't have thought myself vulnerable in any way.
Emma Pollard: While smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer, other contributors include air pollution, occupational hazards and genetics. Brisbane-based thoracic physician and researcher Dr Kwun Fong says lung cancer is Australia's worst cancer killer.
Dr Kwun Fong : The reason why it's got such a poor outcome is because when we detect it usually it's at a very late stage where cure is no longer possible.
Emma Pollard: After years of planning, the National Lung Cancer Screening Program kicks off this month. It aims to save around 12,000 lives in its first decade by picking up lung cancers early using bulk-build low-dose CT scans. It's a targeted screening program open to people with a significant history of smoking, aged between 50 and 70 who have no symptoms of lung cancer.
Dr Kwun Fong : We're very fortunate in one of the few countries where this national program will be rolled out.
Emma Pollard: But like Nicole Ives, a significant number of those with the disease have never smoked. The figure is one in three for women and one in ten for men. So Dr Fong is leading a large national trial of 3,000 participants to see if other groups should also be eligible for screening, including non-smokers.
Dr Kwun Fong : We're trying to advance the knowledge by finding out who else will benefit.
Emma Pollard: It's hoped 1,000 Indigenous Australians will take part as they're twice as likely to develop lung cancer and die from the disease. Firefighters are another vulnerable group because of their exposure to toxins. General Manager of the Rural Fire Brigades Association Queensland, Justin Choveaux, would like to see them screened.
Justin Choveaux : My hope would be that all firefighters, whether you be full-time, part-time or volunteer, would be able to access free screening.
Emma Pollard: A spokesperson for the Federal Department of Health says the National Lung Cancer Screening Program is underpinned by strong clinical evidence. It'll undergo a comprehensive evaluation after two years, which could include changes to the eligibility criteria. Nicole Ives had surgery last year. She's now cancer-free and thankful her tumour was found early. I'd absolutely save my life.
Isabella Higgins: Lung cancer survivor Nicole Ives ending that report by Emma Pollard.
