The National Lung Cancer Audit team released its annual report yesterday making 13 recommendations around quality improvement. The report highlights an improving trend for earlier diagnoses with 29% of new cases being diagnosed at early stage disease. One-year survival is also reported to have increased to 63% compared with 45% in 2015. Inadequate staffing/resources is highlighted as a possible factor for the variations in outcomes seen across the organisations. This year the team have also produced a quality improvement toolkit to support organisations seeking quality improvement. Find out more.

The combination of first-line nivolumab and ipilimumab demonstrated an improvement of overall survival for patients with unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma compared to platinum-based chemotherapy, according to research presented on 8 August at the IASLC Virtual Presidential Symposium. View this short video by authors for more information.

Researchers have implemented a standardised triage process (STP) involving routine nurse-physician triage, preordered staging tests, guidance for inappropriate referrals, and development of a small nodule clinic to improve timeliness of diagnosis and staging of patients with suspected lung cancer. The group reported that the STP programme was associated with improved efficiency and timeliness in the diagnosis and staging of patients with lung cancer. More information.

The NHS has injected £160 million into Covid-friendly cancer treatments, thanks to a series of deals struck between the NHS and pharma companies it was announced at the beginning of the month. The initiative could allow patients to ‘swap’ existing treatments for alternative therapies that can be taken at home and/or that have fewer side effects requiring monitoring. More therapies are expected to be made available soon.

We are delighted to announce the launch of our series of webinars running for the remainder of 2020. The first, Mesothelioma in the shadow of COVID-19, provides an update for all CNS who manage people with mesothelioma. The webinar will feature an update on current trials and treatments by Anne Moylan and Liz Darlison will be sharing the results of several surveys which highlight the impact and effects of COVID-19 on workforce and patients. Register now.

Takeda invites healthcare professionals working in Oncology to join them for a non-promotional, educational mental health webinar series during September 2020. During this webinar series, Consultant psychiatrists, Dr Gregory Shields and Dr Lars Hansen, will provide insight into psychological approaches for patient well-being, as well as an introduction to various CBT techniques. UK and Ireland healthcare professionals only can register.

Our Good Practice Guide is available online in a fully searchable format and provides great tips to help you in every day practice. We'd like to keep this guide up to date with current examples of good practice including any learning from COVID-19. If you have an example of good practice please do share it online using our simple webform.

If you haven't yet followed us on Twitter please take a look and sign up @LCN_UK. We share relevant information, news and advice for members and those interested in lung cancer management. We are close to 1,000 followers so we've set a target to reach this by the end of the year. Please follow us now and tag us into your news and we'll ensure we share to help us reach our target.

World Lung Day takes place this year on 25 September 2020 and offers an opportunity to shine a spotlight on lung health. Help support this campaign by downloading the pledges and sharing on social media. Find out more.