According to Pulmonale (the Portuguese association for the fight against lung cancer): “In 2020, 5,415 Portuguese people were diagnosed with lung cancer. In the same year, 4,797 people died with this diagnosis. A reality that is equivalent to 15 diagnoses and 13 deaths daily.

“When compared to other neoplasms such as breast cancer or colorectal cancer, lung cancer continues to have a very low survival rate: the probability of surviving 5 years after diagnosis is only 15%”.

Survival for advanced stages of lung cancer is much lower than predicted when the disease is detected at an early stage (8 times lower). Therefore, early diagnosis continues to be the most promising method for reducing mortality, according to the association.

“We want to move towards a new paradigm of lung cancer in Portugal” states Isabel Magalhães, president of Pulmonale. “To convey to the population that population screening is not yet implemented in our country and that, together, we can join forces so that it can become a reality”.