26 March 2026
The International Respiratory Coalition (IRC) is delighted to welcome Germany as its 20th national coalition, joining a growing global network dedicated to improving lung health.
The German coalition is founded by three organisations: the German Respiratory Society, the German Paediatric Respiratory Society, and the German Society of Thoracic Surgery. Together, they bring expertise spanning both adult and paediatric lung health and lung surgery.
The coalition’s mission is to promote lung health and improve respiratory care for people across Germany, contributing to the IRC’s global goal of reducing respiratory disease-related mortality by a third.
Respiratory disease in Germany
The launch comes at a time when the burden of respiratory disease in Germany remains significant.
According to Eurostat data (2022), nearly 68,000 people in Germany died from diseases of the respiratory system, accounting for 6.3% of all deaths in the country.
The scale of the challenge is clear, and the German coalition is ready to meet it, bringing together the expertise and ambition needed to make a real difference for lung health in the country.
What the founding partners say
Professor Thomas Bahmer, Secretary General of the DGP, shared insights on what brings the coalition partners together, and their ambitions and priorities. He said:
“The DGP, GPP and DGT approach lung health from three distinct but complementary perspectives: internal medicine, paediatrics and surgery. Only by bringing these disciplines together under one umbrella does a comprehensive picture emerge, one that represents all patients with respiratory and pulmonary diseases across every age group and the full spectrum of care.
“One of our first priorities will be supporting Germany’s new lung cancer screening programme, launching in April 2026 – a landmark initiative that will need coordinated effort from across the respiratory field.
“We also hope to serve as a nucleus for a broader coalition, drawing in patient representatives, different levels of care, and research collaborators over time. And we look forward to learning from IRC member coalitions in other countries, because while healthcare settings differ, the medical challenges we face are often the same.”
A growing global network
Germany joins 19 existing national coalitions within the IRC, each at different stages of progress but all united by a shared commitment to improving respiratory health in their countries. The network now spans nations across Europe and beyond, from Austria and Belgium to Ukraine and Türkiye.
The IRC warmly welcomes the German coalition and looks forward to working alongside its founding associations towards a future where fewer people suffer and die from preventable and treatable lung conditions.
Learn more about the national coalitions supported by the IRC