In Ireland, lung cancer is the leading cause of death. Just 20% of people diagnosed with the disease surviving beyond five years.

Meanwhile five-year survival rates for common cancers such as, Prostate: 99%, Breast: 89% and Colorectal: 65%.

However, many countries throughout Europe have improved the management of lung cancer through better risk reduction strategies, diagnosis and treatment.

Without a national lung screening programme, the most important tool in the fight is the patient identifying a symptom - most noticeably a long standing cough.

However, research conducted by National Cancer Control Programme found that those most at risk are least likely to seek a consultation.

Our communications challenge: To engage those most at risk (Men 40-65) with a message they couldn't ignore.

Our marketing challenge: We had a small budget - just €60k for fees, production, media, PR & VAT! How would we reach all of Ireland?

The First Poster To Catch Lung Cancer will save lives now and in the future.

1,000 activations over the week it was live

10,000 views of the activation film in the first week alone

150,000 social engagements

PR Reach 4.5M

Visits to the Marie Keating Foundation Lung Cancer page increased by 124.3% over previous month

59% of those surveyed through Ireland's Men's Sheds (Those most at risk of lung cancer are men 40-65) said they were more likely to get a cough

checked having seen the film

A petition designed to secure just 2,690 signatures - the same number as those that die each year from lung cancer - called on the Irish Government to match our innovation with real action on a lung screening programme: to catch the lung cancer before symptoms appear.

The result? The Irish Government has for the first time committed to a review.

Research conducted by Ireland's National Cancer Control Programme found that those most at risk are least likely to seek a consultation, mostly because they fear 'bad news'. This same research highlighted that the target audience had therefore a tendency to 'screen out' traditional style public awareness messages.

We needed:

- A new way to reach them discreetly

- A way to get their attention

- A way to get the positive impact of a consultation to them (that early detection vastly improves survival)

The poster would get the attention of the few at the media site, However, by filming the activation and combining it with powerful patient testimony in a non-traditional space (social media film) we could use one poster to speak to all of Ireland.

We considered where smokers and ex-smokers were likely to be - outside. Either smoking or vaping as recovered smokers. We needed an OOH activation.

Factoring in lower socio-economic status as an additional risk factor, it needed to be an OOH poster at a bus stop.

Using the budget in the smartest way possible, we filmed the poster in action, combining it with powerful patient testimony that new treatments were pro-longing their life.

Tactical online media and radio buys targeted the areas where incidence of lung cancer is highest - lower urban socio-economic areas and some rural outliers.

A poster that only revealed itself for one person at a time - and then only for those with a cough meant the media strategy was as targeted, precise and effective at scale as the new medications that are now available to beat the disease.