The Oncology Society of the Chinese Medical Association organized a multidisciplinary panel of experts from respiratory medicine, medical oncology, thoracic surgery, radiation oncology, radiology, and pathology to develop the "Guideline for clinical diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer (2026 edition)". The guideline aims to further standardize prevention and management of lung cancer in China, improve diagnostic and therapeutic levels, enhance patient prognosis, and provide evidence‑based recommendations for clinicians at all levels.
Compared with the 2025 edition, the 2026 guideline incorporates updates and refinements across multiple domains: screening, pathology/molecular testing, and treatment. The revisions reflect recent clinical research findings and newly approved indications by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA). The guideline synthesizes international recommendations and the current status of clinical practice in China, grounding recommendations in drugs and indications realistically available to Chinese clinicians.
The screening section expands on quality control requirements for low‑dose computed tomography (LDCT) screening, providing more detailed expectations for image acquisition and program quality assurance. The guideline also introduces the concepts and applicable scope of opportunistic screening and the incorporation of artificial intelligence technologies into lung cancer screening workflows. These additions clarify when opportunistic screening may be appropriate and outline how AI tools can support screening, within defined application limits.
The pathology section was updated to reflect the latest clinical evidence and newly approved indications by the NMPA. Recommendations for molecular pathological testing were supplemented, and several new gene testing–related suggestions were added. These changes are intended to guide selection of biomarker and genetic tests that inform targeted therapies and precision treatment decisions for non‑small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Treatment recommendations were revised in several key areas. Perioperative neoadjuvant and adjuvant regimens for NSCLC were updated to align with recently approved drugs and indications. For unresectable stage III NSCLC, the guideline added additional options for consolidation immunotherapy following concurrent or sequential chemoradiotherapy. First‑line and subsequent‑line treatment strategies for patients with advanced EGFR‑mutated NSCLC were further refined to reflect new evidence and regulatory approvals. Overall, the treatment section integrates surgical, systemic, and radiotherapeutic approaches based on contemporary practice and approved therapeutic options in China.
The guideline includes updated treatment recommendations for NSCLC patients with specific molecular subtypes. Based on newly approved agents, recommendations were revised for tumors harboring ALK fusions, KRAS G12C mutations, HER‑2 mutations, and MET amplification. These updates aim to align molecular diagnosis with available targeted therapies and to inform clinicians on sequencing and selection of agents within the framework of NMPA approvals.
A core principle of the guideline is adherence to NMPA‑approved indications. Recommendations emphasize therapies and diagnostic tests that are practically available in China. The document therefore combines international guideline recommendations with local regulatory and availability realities to produce pragmatic, implementable guidance for Chinese clinical settings.
The guideline is intended for clinicians across specialties involved in lung cancer care, including respiratory medicine, medical oncology, thoracic surgery, radiation oncology, pathology, radiology, and laboratory medicine. It covers the full clinical pathway: screening, diagnosis, pathology and genetic testing, immunologic and molecular biomarker testing, treatment modalities (surgical, systemic, radiotherapeutic), and follow‑up.
All authors declared no conflicts of interest. The guideline was published in Zhonghua Zhong Liu Za Zhi on 2026 Sep 23;48(9):1023–1059. PubMed record: PMID 42764215; DOI 10.3760/cma.j.cn112152-20260511-00228. The full text links include the Chinese Medical Association Publishing House and other full‑text sources as listed on the PubMed entry.
Note: This rewrite reflects only the content reported in the PubMed abstract and metadata. Detailed recommendations, specific drug names, dosing, and algorithms were not reported in the PubMed abstract and are available in the full guideline text referenced by the DOI and full‑text links.