Lung cancer: NICE issues an updated quality standard

The key goals of the quality standard are improvements in the following areas:

• Diagnoses at stage I or II;
• Survival rates at one and five years;
• Mortality rates;
• Health-related quality of life; and
• Satisfaction with care received.

The quality standard covers the following six recommendations:

• Local authorities and health care commissioning groups should use coordinated campaigns to increase awareness regarding the signs and symptoms of lung cancer and encourage individuals to seek medical advice if necessary.
• Individuals with suspected or confirmed lung cancer who are current smokers should receive evidence-based stop-smoking support.
• Individuals with suspected or confirmed lung cancer should have access to a named lung cancer clinical nurse specialist.
• Individuals with lung cancer considered for treatment with curative intent should have investigations for accurate diagnosis and staging and assessment of lung function.
• Individuals with stage I or II non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and good performance status should receive treatment with curative intent.
• Individuals with stage III or IV NSCLC undergoing tissue sampling should have samples taken suitable for pathological diagnosis and evaluation of predictive biomarkers.