Younger patients (< or = 50 years of age) develop lung cancer. Many series report 5-10% of all cases occurring in younger patients. Outcome, inspite of treatment, is universally poor. Females and adenocarcinomas are over-represented and the aetiology for such an early-age presentation is unclear. The aims of this retrospective study were to review the clinical characteristics, treatment details and outcome of patients aged 50 years or younger diagnosed with lung cancer (small cell and non-small cell). Over a period of 34 months, 497 lung cancer patients were treated at the Liverpool Hospital Cancer Therapy Centre. Thirty-seven (7.4%) patients aged less than or equal to 50 years were identified. The median age at diagnosis was 44 years (range 32-49 years) in 20 females and 17 males. Adenocarcinoma was the predominant histological subtype (32%). No referred patient had stage I/II disease. Almost 90% of patients were smokers. Median survival following diagnosis was 12 months (range, 9 days-68 months) with 70% having died by the close of study. The clinical characteristics and outcome of young patients in our study were comparable to other similar series.