Catherine Ardagh (Dublin South Central, Fianna Fail)
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997. To ask the Minister for Health her Department’s plans and timeframe for the introduction of a national lung cancer screening programme using low-dose CT scanning, in line with recommendations before the National Screening Advisory Committee and given the success of the lung health check pilot initiatives in north Dublin and the northeast, which have shown clear benefits in early detection and improved outcomes, but now require clarity on national rollout and next steps; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [61362/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I am committed to supporting Ireland’s population screening programmes, which are a valuable part of our health service, enabling early treatment and care for many people, and improving the overall health of our population.

The Programme for Government commits to evaluate the current lung cancer screening pilot in line with WHO criteria and develop recommendations for a way forward. However, it is important to highlight that consideration of any changes to Ireland’s screening programmes will be facilitated through established evidence-driven protocols.

The National Screening Advisory Committee (NSAC) is the independent expert group that considers proposed changes to Ireland’s screening programmes. NSAC assesses the evidence in a robust and transparent manner, and against internationally accepted criteria, before making recommendations to myself, as Minister for Health.

The rigorous processes utilised by NSAC are critical to ensure that our screening programmes are effective, quality assured and operating to safe standards, and that the benefits of screening outweigh the harms.

Under Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, an updated European Council (EC) Recommendation on cancer screening was published in December 2022. The Recommendation calls for the further expansion of cervical, breast and colorectal (bowel) cancer screening as well as feasibility studies on future screening programmes for gastric, prostate and lung cancer.

My Department is coordinating Irish inputs as part of an EU4Health-funded Joint Action project, titled EUCanScreen (2024-2028). The project is aimed at coordinating research activities associated with the updated EC Recommendation across Europe.

As part of their involvement in EUCanScreen, my Department and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) are involved in a task related to the integration of smoking cessation with low-dose CT screening among heavy smokers. This project aims to identify, classify and summarise the efficacy of recruitment strategies for lung cancer screening. It will include classifying recruitment interventions, assessing the quality of the reviews included and producing a narrative synthesis to summarise key insights from the identified reviews.

I am also supportive of the involvement of Irish-based researchers in a clinical trial under the EU4Health-funded SOLACE project. The ‘Lung Health Check’ pilot is a prospective study involving Beaumont Hospital, the RCSI and was launched in March 2025. It is primarily funded by the Irish Cancer Society and supported by SOLACE consortium, with funding also provided by my Department’s Women’s Health Fund.

This pilot aims to assess the feasibility of instituting a community-based lung health check programme in Ireland by inviting individuals in the North Dublin and the North-East region who are identified as being of higher risk of lung problems to attend their mobile screening unit for breathing tests and a low-dose chest CT scan.

The findings gained through the EUCanScreen and SOLACE projects will form part of the evidence base for future consideration by NSAC.

Finally, it should be highlighted that screening programmes are for people without symptoms. If anyone becomes aware of symptoms, or if they have concerns or worries, they should contact a medical professional immediately.