Cardiothoracic surgeons must be involved early in lung cancer diagnosis to deal with the anticipated rise in detected cases if Australia adopts a national screening program, according to Queensland doctors.

They also argue for a dramatic “rethink and redesign” of how lung cancer is managed to ensure treatment delays do not outweigh the proposed benefits of screening in targeted populations.

“This process will require considerable expansion of current infrastructure,” write cardiothoracic surgeons Dr Cheng He and Dr Andrie Stroebel, and medical registrar Dr Frazer Kirk, from Gold Coast University Hospital.

Last year, the Medical Services Advisory Committee approved a plan by Cancer Australia to screen current and former smokers aged 50-70 for lung cancer, but the Federal Government is yet to commit to funding it.