Public Policy Determinants of Lung Cancer Outcomes in the United States: A Review

Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States despite advances in medicine. While risk factors such as smoking history and occupational exposures are well established, the impact of policy interventions on patient outcomes and healthcare disparities remains understudied. There is a need to review evidence linking public policies to lung cancer outcomes and healthcare disparities in the US. We conducted a comprehensive literature review of peer-reviewed articles from 2010 to May 2026 using the online tool SysRev. Results showed that policies such as tobacco taxation, advertising restrictions, and healthcare access programs demonstrate appreciable effectiveness in reducing incidence and improving survival outcomes. Additionally, healthcare disparities by race or socioeconomic status are amplified by fragmented insurance systems and state-level policy variation. Occupational and environmental regulations are enforced inconsistently, and policy interventions significantly influence lung cancer outcomes and health equity. This review shows that addressing systemic barriers, strengthening tobacco controls, and enforcing regulatory protections consistently could substantially reduce disparities and mortality.