A 39-year-old former miner has become the 10th person diagnosed with black lung in Queensland and is unlikely to be the last.
Authorities expect further cases of the potentially deadly disease will be identified as mining companies offer workers to have new x-rays taken and existing ones re-examined.
Three cases have been confirmed this week alone, with 62-year-old and 55-year-old underground coal miners also diagnosed.
All three had worked at mines in central Queensland's Bowen Basin.
Black lung, officially known as pneumoconiosis, is caused by long-term exposure to fine airborne coal dust in areas with poor ventilation.
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It was thought to have been eradicated in Australia for decades until last year when the Queensland's Department of Mines announced three new cases in December.
The 10 confirmed cases are current or former workers who have been reported to the Mine's health surveillance unit and validated by the department's occupational physician.
But the CFMEU says it is aware of dozens of cases yet to be acknowledged by the government.
A Senate committee has been investigating the re-emergence of black lung, including issues around the detection and treatment.
Its interim report recommended the federal government establish a national coal dust monitoring group and states and territories adopt the national standard for coal dust exposure.
Queensland Mines Minister Anthony Lynham has ordered an independent review of the state's existing screening systems.
