Breathing barriers: a new paper calls for action to reframe lung health

A new paper published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine warns that lung disease is critically underfunded and under-recognised, despite being one of the world’s leading causes of death and disability.

The paper, Breathing Barriers: Bridging Lung Health, Research and Awareness Gaps, argues that lung conditions like asthma, COPD and pulmonary fibrosis are stuck in a cycle of low awareness, poor funding and outdated ideas. Together, these factors prevent progress in tackling the global burden of lung disease.

The burden of lung diseases:

• COPD is the third-leading cause of death globally, expected to affect 590 million people by 2050.
• Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) often leads to death within 3 to 5 years. This is worse than many cancers.
• Despite this, only 4 in 100 research papers published in 2019 focused on respiratory topics-the lowest proportion in 50 years.
• A WHO report found a tiny proportion of non-communicable disease research funding between 2012-2017 (just 2%) was allocated to lung diseases.

These challenges continue even though lung diseases often report worse death rates, years lived with disability and number of cases, than other major diseases, including diabetes.

A call for change

To tackle these issues, the authors suggest 3 key actions aimed at doctors, decision-makers and the public:

1. Develop national respiratory strategies: structured national frameworks could ensure long-term and consistent investment in lung health research and advocacy. The International Respiratory Coalition has been set up to support national respiratory societies develop and advocate for respiratory plans. The paper also refers to the Healthy Lungs for Life campaign as a successful example of national-level action that can help put lung health on the map.
2. Empower patient-led advocacy: patient communities have the power to successfully mobilise public and political will. This can help change policy and research priorities and foster research partnerships.
3. Support doctors as public communicators: doctors and respiratory specialists must play a more visible role in communicating with the public through media, storytelling and social platforms. This action can help to increase awareness and reshape perceptions of lung health.

Why is this important?

Lung health is often overshadowed in public debate due to stigma and outdated assumptions. Many people still believe that lung disease is related to smoking history or personal choices.

In reality, the burden of lung disease is increasingly driven by air pollution, occupational dangers and non-smoking-related conditions. Yet these issues receive limited media attention, fewer national campaigns and minimal political engagement.

It is important to change how lung health is discussed, remove the stigma and ensure the lungs become a part of mainstream conversation. Lung health needs more support and investment, better policies and improved public education and understanding.

Ongoing efforts, such as public campaigns and professional engagement, are essential to promote awareness and drive meaningful change in research priorities and healthcare policy.

Read the full paper: Breathing barriers: bridging lung health, research, and awareness

How you can help 

We encourage patient organisations and the ELF community to share this important message within your networks. Raising awareness of lung health challenges can help change public attitudes and influence decision-makers. Together, we can help reframe the conversation about lung health and improve outcomes for all those affected.