The risk of dying from the cancers with the highest mortality rates varies ‘massively’ across England, according to a study published in The Lancet Oncology. 

Researchers found that the risk of dying from 10 cancers before the age of 80 declined for both men and women between 2002 and 2019.

Report author Professor Majid Ezzati said: ‘Although our study brings the good news that the overall risk of dying from cancer has decreased across all English districts in the last 20 years, it also highlights the astounding inequality in cancer deaths in different districts around England.’

In 2019, the risk of dying from cancer before the age of 80 ranged from one in 10 in Westminster to one in six in Manchester for women, and from one in eight in Harrow to one in five in Manchester for men.

The highest risks of dying were in northern cities such as Liverpool, Manchester, Hull and Newcastle, and in coastal areas to the east of London.

The risk of dying from cancer was found to be higher in districts with more poverty, which authors said was due in part to the strong link between poverty and the risk of dying from lung cancer.

Report author Theo Rashid said: ‘The greatest inequality across districts was for the risk of dying from cancers where factors such as smoking, alcohol and obesity have a large influence on the risk of getting cancer.

‘Due to funding cuts, many local authorities have reduced their budgets for smoking cessation since 2010.

‘Our data shows we cannot afford to lose these public health programmes and are in urgent need of the reintroduction and strengthening of national and local policies which combat smoking and alcohol.’

The chairman of the Local Government Association’s community wellbeing board, David Fothergill, said: 'We need to ensure that cancer screening services can be accessed by all communities and that everyone, regardless of their social and personal circumstance, has an opportunity to make an informed personal choice about cancer screening.

'We need to strengthen efforts to understand and engage with specific community groups to address variations in participation.'