Smokers will be offered a free lung screening scan from middle age under a landmark NHS plan to tackle lung cancer with early diagnosis.
Ministers are ready to back plans, recommended by health bosses, to roll out CT scans in mobile units and trucks based in supermarket car parks.
A pilot scheme found that three-quarters of lung cancer cases at stage one or two can be spotted by these checks.
Downing Street and Health Ministers are in discussions about funding levels for the project following recommendations from the UK National Screening Committee (UKNSC).
The free lung screening is said to be part of a number of initiatives planned for this year to prevent early cancer prognosis.
Steve Barclay told the health and social care committee: 'We are now detecting more stage 1 and stage 2 cancers in the most deprived communities than in the most affluent communities and that is because of the lung cancer screening programme that we've got in place.'
According to Cancer Research UK, there are around 48,500 new lung cancer cases in the UK every year.
Around 35,000 deaths occur with smoking being the leading cause of lung cancer at 70 per cent.