This is good news for anyone at risk of lung cancer: catching it early can mean the difference between a simple cure and a terminal diagnosis.

• Lung cancer is the top cancer killer both nationwide and in Hawaii, but survival rates flip dramatically with timing — around 10% at late stage versus near 90% when caught early.
• People aged 50 to 80 who have smoked heavily (roughly a pack a day for 20 years, or an equivalent mix) should get screened.
• Current or former smokers who quit within the last 15 years also qualify for screening.
• Lung cancer can have no symptoms at all, but coughing up blood, severe shortness of breath, or unexplained weight loss are warning signs that call for a doctor visit and possibly a lung specialist.
• Hawaii's Asian and Filipino communities face added risk from breathing in smoke from wood-burning stoves or farm crop burning, meaning even lifelong non-smokers can develop lung cancer.

Outlook: Hawaii hospitals are expanding lung cancer care, building a new procedure suite and adding robotic biopsy technology by 2027 to catch cases earlier and treat them more safely.