Overview
- New GECP registry data show one in twenty lung cancers in Spain is now diagnosed before age 50, with women approaching 28% of new cases and rising fastest in Europe.
- Most patients are still found late, with 56% diagnosed at stage III or IV and an overall five‑year survival near 30% despite recent gains.
- Low‑dose CT screening pilots under the Cassandra project are running in 15 hospitals across six regions and are slated to expand to about 20 centers, with evidence pointing to a 20–25% mortality reduction in high‑risk groups.
- Tobacco remains the leading risk, yet a growing minority of patients never smoked—around 11% overall and a higher share among women—linked to factors such as air pollution, radon, occupational exposures and targetable genetic alterations like EGFR or ALK.
- Clinicians report wider access to genomic testing in Spain (over 80%) and better outcomes with targeted drugs and immunotherapy, while warning lung cancer receives only about 4% of public cancer research funding and calling for a national plan integrating prevention, cessation and equitable treatment access.