Angie Bell (Moncrieff, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

November was Lung Cancer Awareness Month. I attended a morning tea hosted by the Lung Foundation Australia to help build awareness and reduce the stigma of lung cancer. Sadly, lung cancer claims the life of one Australian every hour—a terrible statistic. As part of the morning, we heard from a local patient Michel I'Tel about his lung cancer journey and the impact it had on his life. What I learned about that morning was the stigma that surrounds lung cancer, the sentiment that lung cancer is self-determined. Michel is a non-smoker. Because of the symptoms, which are little known, it is truly a silent killer. It is estimated that, in 2019, 12,800 Australians have and will be diagnosed with lung cancer. It is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Australian men and women. On the Gold Coast, 351 people are diagnosed and 245 people, sadly, lose their battle, each year.

The morning tea hosted at Nerang Bicentennial Community Centre was a good opportunity to discuss a number of issues for cancer sufferers, including the need to improve access to early diagnosis, reduce the stigma for people living with lung cancer and improve psychosocial support. The Morrison government has recently announced funding of $960,000 and added three more medications to the PBS which assist in lung cancer treatment.

This disease also has a traumatic effect on the lives of patients' families and friends. I would like to send my best wishes to all those people suffering lung cancer, and to their families. I wish them time with their family over Christmas, and a safe New Year.