Modern life pushes up cancer rate

Too much food, alcohol and sun has fuelled a massive rise in some forms of cancer, warn UK experts.

Cases of melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer, have risen by 40% in the past decade, figures from Cancer Research UK show.

And mouth cancer, which is associated with smoking and drinking, has risen by almost a quarter.

Research has suggested that around half of all cancers could be prevented by changes to lifestyle.

Rates of kidney cancer and womb cancer - both linked to obesity - have also shown rapid increases over the past 10 years.

Overweight and obese women are twice as likely to develop womb cancer as women of a healthy weight due to higher than normal exposure to the hormone oestrogen.

The charity is particularly concerned about rates of malignant melanoma which have doubled in women and tripled in men since the mid-80s.

In 2004 there were 8,939 cases of malignant melanoma compared with 5,783 in 1995.

They said heavy sun exposure accounted for the vast majority of cases.

However, the figures from the UK Association of Cancer Registries show rates of cervical cancers are falling as a result of the national screening programme.

And due to fewer people smoking, lung cancer rates are continuing to decrease, especially in men.

Sara Hiom, Cancer Research UK's director of health information, said: "We're very concerned that cases of malignant melanoma are spiralling.

"Most cases of this disease could be prevented if people protected themselves in the sun and took care not to burn."