KUALA LUMPUR: Lung diseases are among the top three causes of hospitalisation and death in Malaysia, says Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
The Health Minister said chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) affected a significant portion of the population.
"According to the National Health and Morbidity Survey 2023, 6% of adults and up to 13% of children have asthma, while around one in three sufferers remain undiagnosed," he said at the 2026 Annual Scientific Meeting of the NIHR Global Health Research Unit on Respiratory Health (Respire) here on Monday (Sept 14).
Tuberculosis also continued to place a significant burden on the healthcare system, with an incidence of 96 cases per 100,000 people in 2024, he added.
Dzulkefly said the government was implementing the Healthy Lung Initiative 2025-2030 to address the burden of respiratory diseases.
“By the end of this year, 902 health clinics nationwide are expected to implement an integrated lung health approach.
"This brings together health promotion, screening, smoking cessation and referral pathways into a person-centred range of care," he said.
Dzulkefly said the ministry was also moving towards precision public health by expanding AI-assisted chest X-ray screening for early detection.
This includes the LungShield Programme, a collaboration involving the Health Ministry, police and IHH Healthcare Malaysia to screen 10,000 traffic police personnel.
"To ensure our policies are evidence-based, we have established a dedicated database called Nalury, or the National Lung Health Registry, to support programme monitoring and evaluation," he added.
Dzulkefly said the ministry was also tackling the root causes of respiratory diseases through the enforcement of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024.
"Through its enforcement, we are protecting our youth from the insidious marketing of vapes and e-cigarettes.
"We are also leveraging digital innovations, such as the Cik Era AI Companion, to provide accessible smoking cessation support right in the palm of their hands," he said.
Dzulkefly said Malaysia had also elevated lung health as a key regional priority during the 17th Asean Health Ministers’ Meeting in Kuala Lumpur last week.
"Health challenges know no boundaries," he said, adding that the meeting established a platform to translate global commitments into coordinated regional action.
He said programmes such as Respire were crucial in producing the evidence needed to expand services, adopt new technologies and ensure equitable access.
"Specifically, your focus on delivering low-cost, scalable clinical interventions for low- and middle-income countries is exactly the kind of pragmatic innovation we need," he told the meeting.
Respire’s research in Malaysia covers asthma, COPD, tuberculosis, pulmonary rehabilitation and air quality, he added.
"These are not isolated academic questions, but relevant challenges we face every day in our clinics and hospitals," Dzulkefly said.
The four-day meeting, hosted by Universiti Malaya and the University of Edinburgh, brings together more than 100 international delegates.
