If this is an emergency, don't use this tool — call 000 now.
Severe breathlessness, chest pain, or coughing up a lot of blood: call 000 or go to your nearest emergency department.
Do I qualify for Australia's free lung scan?
Quit smoking a while back, or still smoking? The free National Lung Cancer Screening Program has four rules. This tool does the pack-year sum you can't do in your head and checks your numbers against all four, so you walk into your GP knowing what to ask.
These are symptoms worth getting checked — not screening.
Screening is for people with no symptoms. What you've ticked should be looked at by a doctor soon, not put off for a scan program.
Coughing up blood, in particular, needs a same-day GP or after-hours review.
Book a GP appointment now, or if you're acutely unwell — severe breathlessness, chest pain, coughing large amounts of blood — call 000.
You can still see how the eligibility rules work below, but get the symptoms seen to first.
Dr HB LoIntegrative GP
Lung cancer screening eligibility check ·
Your inputs
What this means
Your pack-years
Against the program's 4 rules
The honest part
Eligible doesn't mean you should definitely scan — and ineligible doesn't mean you're in the clear. Low-dose CT finds cancers early, but it also picks up harmless spots that lead to more scans, anxiety, and occasionally a procedure you didn't need. Roughly 1 in 5 to 1 in 4 first scans flag a nodule, and the large majority turn out to be nothing (Cancer Council Australia — evidence for screening). The program weighs this up by only inviting higher-risk people and re-scanning every 2 years (NLCSP).
This tool checks the eligibility rules — it can't tell you your personal risk, and it can't see your scan. A GP, nurse practitioner or specialist confirms eligibility and gives the referral.
Take it with you
Email yourself the one-pager to bring to your GP.
Your pack-year sum, your eligibility check against the four rules, and the three questions to ask — on one page, ready for the appointment.
I'll also send the occasional drhblo email. Unsubscribe anytime.
The three questions to ask
"Based on my history, do I meet the National Lung Cancer Screening Program criteria — can you work out my pack-years with me?"
"What does the low-dose CT involve, and what happens if it finds a small spot?"
"If I don't qualify, is there anything else I should be doing about my lung-cancer risk?"
Still smoking? Quitting is the single biggest thing that lowers your lung-cancer risk. Free support: Quitline 13 7848 (13 QUIT).
Lung screening is one decision in a cluster. If you smoke or used to, the questions worth asking also cover quitting support, your heart risk, and what a 'spot on the scan' actually means. The full lung & smoking decisions kit walks each one through.
Sources & how the numbers are worked out
National Lung Cancer Screening Program — how it works (eligibility: age 50–70 inclusive, ≥30 pack-years, current smoker or quit within 10 years, asymptomatic; free LDCT via Medicare with GP/NP/specialist referral; 2-yearly rescreen; commenced 1 July 2025), Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing — health.gov.au/our-work/nlcsp/how-it-works
Lung cancer — evidence for screening (benefits, false-positive / nodule and overdiagnosis harms), Cancer Council Australia — cancer.org.au
National Lung Cancer Screening Program, Lung Foundation Australia — lungfoundation.com.au
Quitline (13 7848 / 13 QUIT) — national quit-smoking support service (AU).
Pack-year definition used: 20 cigarettes/day for 1 year = 1 pack-year. NLCSP thresholds (30 pack-years, 10-year quit window, age 50–70) differ from the US USPSTF criteria. AU primary source (NLCSP) is binding here. Verified 2026-06-09 via WebSearch against health.gov.au; re-verify before go-live.