LUNG cancer rates in North-East women have risen by around 16 per cent over the last twenty years according to new Cancer Research UK figures.

But the figures show lung cancer rates in the North-East have fallen by more than a third (36 per cent) in men over the same period and by a fifth (21 per cent) for people overall.

Around 87 per cent of lung cancers are caused by tobacco, with the remaining 13 per cent of cases not related to tobacco. Lung cancer can take many years to develop, so these figures largely mirror changes in previous smoking rates.

More funding is needed for vital research and the charity Cancer Research UK hopes the latest figures will encourage women across the North-East to sign up for the charity’s Race for Life events in the region.

Across Great Britain, lung cancer rates in women have risen by a staggering three quarters (73 per cent) over the last forty years but rates have fallen by nearly half (47 per cent) in men over the same period and by a fifth (20 per cent) for people overall.

The lung cancer rate in women is now 41 per 100,000, up from 23 in 1975. For men, it is now 59 per 100,000, down from 112 in 1975.

For more information on Race for Life visit raceforlife.org or call 0845 600 6050.