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Survival for the most common types of cancer is more than three times higher when the disease is diagnosed early, according to new figures from Cancer Research UK.

The figures show that 80 per cent of patients survive for at least 10 years if cancer is diagnosed at stage one or two. This falls to around 25 per cent in patients who are diagnosed at stages three or four.

The figures included bladder, bowel, breast, cervical, womb, malignant melanoma, ovarian and testicular cancers, which together account for more than 40 per cent of all cancer cases in the UK.

Early diagnosis means a greater range of effective treatments are available for patients, as well as the cost of treatment being lower, however more than a quarter of these cancers are still being diagnosed at stage three or four.

Sara Hiom, Cancer Research UK's director of early diagnosis, said: €These figures show the prize on offer if we can diagnose more cancers earlier. And, if the Government acts on the recommendations in the new cancer strategy, we can increase the number of people diagnosed at an early stage across all cancer types €“ from around half of patients now to more than 60 per cent by 2020 €“ improving the outlook for thousands of people with the disease.€

Pharmacists and their teams are well placed to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of cancer and to help with early detection.