This National Clinical Guideline applies to adults (18 years or older) with newly diagnosed lung cancer, or, those that have a suspected diagnosis of lung cancer in a hospital setting. This guideline is intended for all health professionals involved in the diagnosis, staging and treatment of patients with lung cancer. While the CEO, General Manager and the Clinical Director of the hospital have corporate responsibility for the implementation of the recommendations in this Clinical Guideline, each member of the multidisciplinary team is responsible for the implementation of the individual guideline recommendations relevant to their discipline.

This guideline is also relevant to those involved in clinical governance, in both primary and secondary care, to help ensure that arrangements are in place to deliver appropriate care for the population covered by this guideline. Whilst the guideline is focused on clinical care, it is expected to be of interest to patients with lung cancer and their significant others. Effort has been made to make this document more user friendly. A list of medical abbreviations used throughout the guideline can be found in Appendix 9: Glossary of terms and abbreviations.