This month we welcomed Karen Clayton as the incoming Chair of LCNUK Committee. We'd like to take this opportunity to thank Jackie Fenemore, outgoing Chair, for her dedication and leadership over the years. Karen said: "Jackie has led the committee with quiet determination, her passion to ensure we continued with the work of LCNUK is to be applauded." Reflecting on her time in post and looking ahead to the future, Jackie said "I have so much faith in Karen Clayton, our new chair to continue to lead LCNUK through such unprecedented times. I have really enjoyed this experience."

You are invited to participate in the Thoracic Surgery Group Meeting on the 6th December between 3:00pm and 4:00pm via Zoom. The aim of this meeting is to discuss the future of the group and identify a potential programme of activity. As a member you have received an email with further information about this opportunity. If you are interested in being involved, and haven't yet replied, please let us know on info@lcnuk.org as soon as possible.

You can now watch our webinar on symptom control in mesothelioma on demand. Featuring Kate Slaven, Mesothelioma UK Clinical Nurse Specialist, the session covers the main symptoms associated with a diagnosis of mesothelioma and why we should worry about symptom control in the condition. Kate outlines effective symptom management and shares top tips and handy things to know.

A new report from UK Lung Cancer Coalition (UKLCC) features interviews with UKLCC Clinical Advisory Group, other experts in the field and desk-top research. The report aims to provide a set of recommendations which will ensure that all people with lung cancer, regardless of their social or economic status, age, gender, ethnicity, religion, beliefs, language, or disability etc. have equitable access to diagnosis, treatment and care.

Nursing Times has published coverage of UKLCC's Bridging the Gap Report, helping to highlight the crucial role of lung cancer clinical nurse specialists in tackling health inequalities in lung cancer care. The article calls attention to the report's recommendations to increase the specialist nursing workforce and improve data collection in order to help to address inequalities in lung cancer care. 

We all know the sooner lung cancer is caught, the easier it is to treat. However, vagueness of symptoms, symptom-overlap and disease misconceptions mean many patients face delays to their diagnosis. The new awareness campaign from Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation aims to change this. Featuring real life experiences of best practice and potential hurdles, On the Right Path provides the advice, support and encouragement people need to speed up their diagnosis and potentially save their life.

The first ALK+ UK National Patient Conference, Birmingham September 2022, featured an informative debate the different approaches to TKI treatment. Hear Dr Alastair Greystoke, a Medical Oncologist at the Northern Centre for Cancer Care and Dr Tom Newsom-Davis, a Medical Oncologist at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital debate “Lorlatinib – first or last?”

A meta-analysis published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reports that factors such as histology, sex, smoking status, PD-L1 expression, and tumour mutational burden (TMB) were associated with progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) outcomes in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer patients who received immunotherapy alone or in combination with chemotherapy.

Lung cancer among never-smokers ranks as the 11th most common cancer among men and the 8th most common among women, according to research published in Lung Cancer. In the study, researchers evaluated individual-level data from 77,641 patients in Florida’s cancer registry who were diagnosed with lung cancer during 2014-2018. Data was combined with the registry data with population denominators adjusted with National Health Interview Survey data on smoking prevalence to calculate the incidence of lung cancer in non-smokers.

This month LCNUK representatives joined lung cancer charities and lung cancer clinical nurse specialists for a briefing at the Scottish Parliament on the Nurses Matter campaign. The campaign objective is to codify the CNS role and to provide resources and advocacy that support in enhancing and retaining the existing workforce as well as encourage nursing professionals to specialise in cancer care.

The Health Companion app enables patients to record information regarding their quality of life, general health, symptoms and experience of care. The collected data gives healthcare professionals insight into the patient experience to help to improve patient care. Please tell your patients about the app and the potential benefits.