Sun beds linked to rise in cancer diagnoses

The number of people diagnosed with cancer has increased by 20 per cent in the past decade, according to Office of National Statistics figures released yesterday.

Almost 265,000 new cases were registered in England in 2009 – four per cent, or 10,000 more than the year before.

Skin cancer had the sharpest rise with cases almost doubling to nearly 10,000 – strongly suggesting the message about sun beds and sun burn is failing to get through.

Yesterday's figures are probably an underestimate as not all cancers are registered on official databases. The Brain Cancer Trust believes around half of all primary brain cancer patients – around 8,000 people – are missed from official statistics every year.