Lung cancer rates in women have risen by 73% over the last 40 years according to recently released Cancer Research UK figures.
However, while the rate for women has climbed, the figures show that lung cancer rates have fallen by 47% in men over the same period and by 20% for people overall. Around 87% of lung cancers are caused by tobacco, with the remaining 13% of cases not related to tobacco. Lung cancer can take many years to develop, so these figures largely mirror changes in previous smoking rates.
