Hong Kong to look for early lung cancer signs with new AI screening tools
Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau also says medical fee waiver scheme will be expanded to cover up to 2 million residents
Hong Kong is set to deploy AI to detect early signs of lung cancer among residents and plans to create a new government office to proactively fast-track approval for innovative treatments from around the globe, the health minister has said.
The move signals a major strategic shift by authorities towards new technologies and an aggressive intervention against various forms of cancer, which accounts for one in every four deaths in the city.
Secretary for Health Lo Chung-mau also said on Sunday that a medical fee waiver scheme would be expanded to cover up to 2 million residents, while patients with severe illnesses would have a HK$10,000 (US$1,285) annual cap on their expenses.
The policies were part of a multipronged strategy to enhance early detection, accelerate access to cutting-edge treatments and ensure no one was denied care due to costs as the population aged, he said.
“This is a sentence I can say very loudly: in Hong Kong, we are very lucky,” Lo said. “Hong Kong will not see anyone unable to get appropriate treatment because of economic reasons.”
The reforms, which were laid out in the latest policy address, follow the release of census data showing Hongkongers’ life expectancies had rebounded to record highs in 2024.