This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Cancer survival rates at highest ever level
30/08/2004
More Scots than ever before are surviving cancer, according to new figures out today.
Statistics from the Information and Statistics Division (ISD) show the number of men surviving cancer has increased from 25 per cent (of those diagnosed between 1977 and 1981) to 41 per cent (for those diagnosed between 1997 and 2001).
For females the rate has increased over the same period from 36 per cent to nearly 50 per cent.
The figures also show:
- Breast cancer survival has increased substantially from 60 per cent to 77 per cent
- Cancers of the colon and rectum have seen an improvement in survival from 35 per cent to 50 per cent
Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm said:
"It is hugely encouraging to see that overall survival from cancer is continuing to improve.
"Although these figures pre-date the investment we have put into cancer services through our national cancer strategy, they reflect the advances that have been made over the past decades in better treatment and earlier diagnosis for cancer.
"There is clearly still much work to do to tackle the burden of cancer in Scotland. However latest figures show we still are on track to deliver our target of reducing cancer mortality in people aged under 75 years by 20 per cent by 2010.
"Cancer still blights far too many Scottish families but with the investment we have made in improved diagnosis and treatment and the work we are doing to encourage people to reduce risk of cancer by leading healthier lives, we can make much more progress."
Latest data shows a decrease in cancer mortality rates, per 100,000 population, for people under 75, from 167.3 in 1995 to 144.6 in 2003.
This represents a decrease of 13.6 per cent over eight years.