Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support the adoption of artificial intelligence diagnostic tools across the NHS to improve the early detection of lung cancer and other serious conditions.

The Department is rolling out artificial intelligence (AI) in a range of areas across the United Kingdom health system. AI tools are already being used as a “second pair of eyes” for clinicians, helping to prioritise scans, reduce waiting times, and support earlier intervention.

Through the £113 million Health and Care AI award programme that concluded in March 2025, a number of technologies that support cancer diagnosis were developed and tested. The £21 million AI Diagnostic Fund supported the adoption of technologies in high-demand diagnostic services such as chest X-Ray and chest computed tomography scans to enable faster diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer.

The Government has recently announced an additional £20 million through the AI Diagnostic Fund to ensure all acute trusts can benefit from this technology. To date, these tools have helped more than four million patients receive a faster diagnosis or all-clear diagnosis, with millions more set to benefit from this policy.