Back

EMBARGOED - Radio Talkback for Wed, 28 Oct - Lung scarring claims 11 Australian lives every day: landmark report

Lung Foundation of Australia, Heart of Australia, Centre of Research Excellence for Pulmonary

Talkback interviews on Wed, 28 October are available with Mark Brooke (CEO, Lung Foundation of Australia), Dr Rolf Gomes (Founder, Heart of Australia) and Professor Dan Chambers (University of Queensland respiratory physician and lung scarring expert).

Lung scarring claims 11 Australian lives every day: landmark report

• Deaths from under-recognised lung disease on par with prostate cancer^1,2
• One-in-five cases of irreversible lung scarring due to workplace exposures¹
• Without a national response, almost 1,000 Australians will die annually from workplace-related lung scarring by 2030¹ 

A respiratory condition that leaves the lungs irreversibly scarred is claiming almost 4,000 Australian lives every year, with an alarming number of cases caused by workplace exposures in industries such as mining, farming and construction.¹

Launched in Canberra on Wednesday 28 October, the Burden of Pulmonary Fibrosis: Hard Truths of Lung Scarring in Australia report found that nearly 22,000 Australians are now living with irreversible and progressive lung scarring,¹ significantly more than previous estimates.³

Known medically as pulmonary fibrosis, lung scarring is an incurable condition where the lungs gradually stiffen, leading to worsening breathlessness, breathing difficulty, declining lung function and disability. Nearly half of all cases prove fatal within five years of diagnosis.⁴

While the causes of lung scarring are diverse and often hard to determine, the new report reveals 21 per cent of cases are due to workplace exposure to hazardous dusts, vapours and chemicals in industries such as mining, farming, construction, and even hairdressing.¹

The report found that last year alone, almost 1,600 Australians were diagnosed with irreversible lung scarring linked to occupational exposures. It projects that by 2030, almost 1,000 Australians will die annually from lung scarring related to workplace exposure.¹

In Australia, one-in-five stonemasons⁵ and 10 per cent of tunnel construction workers⁶ are expected to develop silicosis, a form of lung scarring. Airborne particles that can cause lung scarring when inhaled are often used in employment sectors as diverse as hairdressing and farming.¹

“While the banning of silica in engineered stone and a national registry for dust diseases is a strong start, more action is needed to reduce the risk of exposure-related lung scarring,” said report contributor and respiratory physician from the University of Queensland, Professor Dan Chambers.

“This is a terrible disease, where a person’s lungs feel heavy and rigid, like they’ve been set in concrete, and the breathlessness feels like suffocating from the inside,” he said.

“Despite claiming the lives of thousands of Australians, lung scarring is under recognised and under resourced with significant gaps in prevention, detection and treatment.”

“The lack of awareness and understanding of lung scarring as a public health issue is concerning, especially given the report’s projection that the number of Australians living with the condition will exceed 25,000 by 2030 – a 55 per cent rise since 2016.”

“Clearly, more needs to be done to limit exposure to hazardous dusts, improve early and accurate diagnosis and end a ten-year new treatment drought for the growing number of Australians with irreversibly scarred lungs.”

Mark Brooke, Lung Foundation Australia CEO, said that “until now, the overall picture of lung scarring and its impact on individuals, society and the health system had been unclear.”

Mr Brooke explained that for most cases of lung scarring, there is no known cause. “For others, doctors point to hazardous vapours, air pollution and smoking, medical conditions such as scleroderma and rheumatoid arthritis where the immune system mistakenly attacks itself, as well as lung injury caused by certain medications,” he said.

“Once scarring occurs, the lung can’t be repaired. Medication can slow the disease but can’t stop its progression, and while lung transplantation is the only way to prevent an early death only a fraction of patients with lung scarring are eligible for a transplant.”⁷

“This report must act as a wake-up call to improve prevention, as well as bolster detection and treatment of this terminal illness.”

Mr Brooke reiterated Lung Foundation of Australia calls to transition the Federal Government’s National Lung Cancer Screening Program into an integrated, multi-disease lung screening initiative.⁸

Research shows that approximately 8-10 per cent of lung cancer screenings reveal lung abnormalities that indicate early lung scarring.^9,10

Dr Rolf Gomes, Founder of Heart of Australia, the mobile health organisation undertaking lung screening in rural communities in Queensland and New South Wales, said that “one-in-five cases of lung scarring occurs in rural and remote areas, where those affected face significant barriers to accessing specialist care”.

“The more lungs we examine, the more people we find with signs of lung scarring, especially in farming and mining communities where exposure to hazardous dusts, vapours and chemicals can be high,” he said.

“We know that many Australians with lung scarring wait years for a diagnosis and face delays in accessing specialist care, particularly in regional areas. Heart of Australia is helping to bridge the gap in access to diagnostic testing, which must be a central element of a coordinated national response.”

The report calculates the cost of irreversible lung scarring to the Australian economy and healthcare system at $4.2 billion annually.¹

Key recommendations presented in the report include:

• Prioritising research funding for pulmonary fibrosis.
• Expanded access to comprehensive, multidisciplinary care.
• Faster access through the PBS to next-generation medicines that slow disease progression with few side effects.

Commissioned by Boehringer Ingelheim Australia, the report was developed by HTAnalysts with the support of Lung Foundation Australia, the Centre of Research Excellence in Pulmonary Fibrosis and Heart of Australia.

Media contacts:

• Max Weber – 0452 213 513 or [email protected]
• Gabriel Polychronis – 0488 084 737 or [email protected]

About pulmonary fibrosis
Pulmonary fibrosis causes inflammation and ongoing scarring of the lungs.¹ As scarring builds up, it becomes progressively harder to breathe and lung function steadily declines, impeding oxygen circulation around the body and in turn increasing the strain on other organs.^1,3

There are many causes of pulmonary fibrosis, including prolonged exposure to harmful dusts, chemicals and allergens, genetic or familial factors, and underlying autoimmune diseases such as scleroderma and rheumatoid arthritis.¹ Where the cause is known, the condition is called progressive pulmonary fibrosis, but in many cases, the cause is undetermined and known medically as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

The early symptoms of pulmonary fibrosis, including breathlessness, persistent coughing and fatigue, may be mistaken for other respiratory conditions, such as a chest infection, asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.¹¹ Pulmonary fibrosis is diagnosed using physical examinations such as lung function tests and confirmed using high-resolution CT scans.¹¹

There is no cure for pulmonary fibrosis, and treatment options are limited.¹² The most widely prescribed therapy to treat pulmonary fibrosis are antifibrotics that reduce the rate of disease progression, but these medicines often have significant side effects including diarrhea and nausea,¹² which lead to roughly half of patients discontinuing treatment.¹³ Lung transplant may be a treatment option for some people with pulmonary fibrosis, but may not be possible for many patients of advanced age or with underlying conditions.¹⁴

#ENDS

References

1. HTAnalysts. Burden Of Pulmonary Fibrosis - Hard Truths on Lung Scarring in Australia. October 2026
2. Cancer Australia. Cancer in Australia statistics. 21 October 2025
3. Cox, I. et al. Incidence, prevalence and mortality of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis in Australia, Respirology, 2022
4. Zheng, Q. et al. Mortality and survival in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis, ERJ Open Res, 2022
5. Silicosis Support Hub. About Silicosis: Key Statistics about Silicosis in Australia. Accessed 12 August 2026
6. Cole, K. et al. The future burden of silicosis and lung cancer among tunnel construction workers in Queensland, Annals of Work Exposures and Health, 2025
7. King, C et al. Factors associated with listing for lung transplantation in IPF patients: An analysis of the pulmonary fibrosis foundation registry, Heliyon, 2023
8. Lung Foundation Australia. Lung Cancer Blueprint 3.0- Time to take the next step: Delivering equitable lung cancer reform in Australia. August 2026
9. Mackintosh JA et al. ILA in the Queensland Lung Cancer Screening Study: prevalence and progression over 2 years of surveillance. Internal Medicine Journal, 2019
10. Sverzellati N et al. Interstitial lung diseases in a lung cancer screening trial. European Respiratory Journal, 2011
11. Lung Foundation Australia. Pulmonary fibrosis. 18 February 2026
12. Glass, D et al. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: Current and future treatment, Clinical Respiratory Journal, 2022
13. Takehara, K et al. Differential Discontinuation Profiles between Pirfenidone and Nintedanib in Patients with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, Cells, 2022
14. Hernandez, R. et al. Lung Transplantation in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, Medical Sciences, 2018

Boehringer Ingelheim Pty Limited, ABN 52 000 452 308, 15 Khartoum Road, Macquarie Park, NSW 2113, Australia
Copyright © 2026. Prepared October 2026. MPR-AU-100186

Contact details:

• Max Weber – 0452 213 513 or [email protected]
• Gabriel Polychronis – 0488 084 737 or [email protected]