The makers of the early Cancer Detection lung test (CDT) hope it will help more people survive lung cancer.

Currently sufferers are diagnosed on their symptoms, which means it can often be too late for treatment.

The makers of the new test say it will improve diagnosis of the disease and Australian support groups are campaigning for the test to be available here.

Professor John Robertson of Nottingham University in Britain led the research and says the test identifies defences released by the human body in response to the earliest stages of the cancer.