The SNP's Michael Matheson has told the Scottish parliament of the need for establishing a national respiratory disease strategy.

Matheson highlighted Scotland's poor record on lung disease and pointed to lung cancer as a particular worry.

"Over half a million Scots suffer from lung disease and within that around four and a half thousand are diagnosed with lung cancer, the most extreme form of lung disease, every year. Lung cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in men in Scotland, and for women the rate of deaths from lung cancer has tripled in the last 20 years," he said.

The Central Scotland MSP pointed to statistics showing that survival prospects had barely improved over the last quarter of a century and that fewer than five per cent of patients remain alive five years after diagnosis.

Comparisons with other countries also reflect poorly on Scotland's health record. World Health Organisation figures show that the death rates for men are 53.4 per 100,000 in Ireland compared to 93.8 in Scotland. For women, the same figures show death rates of 27.8 in Ireland and 62.7 in Scotland. Ireland has one of the best lung cancer records, while Scotland has one of the worst.

"Scotland should be at the forefront of tackling all forms of lung disease, instead we are lagging behind most other comparable nations," said Matheson, adding that a national strategy was needed to end the "appalling record".

The debate in the Scottish parliament comes as the Third Global Conference for Cancer Organisations in Brighton comes to its conclusion.

At the conference, leaders of the major cancer organisations have said that hundreds of thousands of lives could be saved if governments cooperated on treating the disease.

There were calls for the developed world to share the fruits of its research with the rest of the world. Improvements in genetic testing and also led to calls for screening programmes to catch those at high risk of certain cancer types.