The Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (IIAC) says just having lung cancer caused by silica exposure at work is not enough to justify and its inclusion as a stand-alone prescribed industrial disease. At the moment  “primary carcinoma of the lung where there is accompanying silicosis” is accepted as prescribed industrial disease, but lung cancer that doesn’t come with the lung scarring condition silicosis is not covered. An IIAC information note concludes: “After reviewing the limited evidence available on this subject, the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council (IIAC) decided not to make any recommendations for changes to the list of prescribed diseases for which people can claim Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (IIDB).” In 1996, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) rated silica as a group 1 human carcinogen.

Silica and lung cancer, IIAC information note.