Scotland 'has highest cancer rates'
Scotland has both the highest rates of incidence and death from cancer
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Thursday, 26, Jul 2007 03:33
Scotland has the highest rates of cancer in the UK, government statistics have revealed.
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), there were 446 new cases of cancer per 100,000 males and 379 per 100,000 females north of the border between 2002 and 2004.
Scotland also had the highest overall death rate for cancer in the UK.
Wales had the second highest rate of new cases, with 450 and 366 for men and women, respectively, compared with 394 and 338 in England.
In males the most common cases of cancer were found to be prostate, lung and colorectal, while females were most commonly diagnosed with breast, lung and colorectal cancer.
Commenting on the figures, Ruth Yates, head of statistical information at Cancer Research UK, said that although cancer incidence rates have remained relatively stable, death rates have fallen.
This decline, she said, is due mainly due to a decline in smoking rates as well as earlier detection and better treatment of cancers.
"Higher smoking rates in Scotland account for much of the difference in cancer rates between England and Scotland. Smoking causes around 90 per cent of lung cancer cases and is linked to a range of other forms of cancer, including oesophagus, mouth and larynx," Ms Yates added.
"It is worth noting that rates of lung cancer in Scotland have fallen in recent years at a faster rate than anywhere else in the world.
"Raising awareness of the avoidable risks of cancer, such as smoking, has and will continue to help people reduce their risk of developing the disease. We hope that the smokefree laws recently introduced across the UK will help further to drive down smoking rates."