Submitting Lung Cancer Screening Data Set (LCSDS) data

The data requirements for the Lung Cancer Screening Data Set (LCSDS) are in the guidance documentation, including the LCSDS v1.0 Technical Output Specification.

To enable you to submit, we have created a new XML Schema, published on TRUD.

You will need to create a new account to view this.

Once you have created an account, you can log in, subscribe, and download a copy of the XML Schema for the LCSDS.

For LCSDS v1.0, the data platform for LCSDS submissions will be the National Data Submission Portal (NDSP). All in-scope activity from 1 July 2026 onwards must be submitted using the NDSP.

The NDSP relies on 2 concepts for defining the timing of file submissions.

These are:

• reporting period - the date/time the reported information relates to, for example, the date of a patient procedure - often referred to as ‘activity data’
• submission window - the period during which files can be submitted into the NDSP, often relating to a calendar month - a reporting period can have multiple submission windows

Submit data each month

LCSDS is a monthly data collection. Each month, you must submit activity for the previous calendar month (known as the reporting period). 

For example, during the August submission window, you should submit activity data for July. 

If no activity occurred, you can report that there was no activity.

Correct data during the submission window

You can submit more than one file during a submission window. This allows you to correct records or improve the quality of your data before the window closes.  

LCSDS uses a ‘last good file’ approach. This means that after the submission window closes, NHS England will use the most recent file that passed validation for national analysis and reporting.

Resubmit data for previous months

You can also resubmit data for previous reporting periods.

If you resubmit data for a previous month, you must submit all activity data for that month, not just the records you have corrected.

Resubmitting data is optional and should usually only be necessary in exceptional circumstances.

You should consider resubmitting if:

• the new data is of higher quality than the original submission
• a correction affects data submitted for later months

For example, if a change to your April data also affects your May and June data, you should resubmit data for all 3 months.

Submission timetable

A submission timetable will be published here. This will set out the reporting periods and corresponding submission windows.