The UK has some of the worst cancer rates in the developed world, according to research, with just 16 per cent living past five years with the most aggressive types.
The Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce studied lung, liver, brain, oesophageal, pancreatic, and stomach cancer rates internationally and found Britain fared badly.
The UK ranked 28th out of 34 for stomach and lung cancers. For pancreatic it was 26th, for brain it came in at 25th, then 21st for liver and 16th for oesophageal.
Britain ranked 27th overall, with Korea, Belgium, and the USA the respective top three.
Around 90,000 people are diagnosed with one of the five in Britain every year and the six types account for nearly half of all cancer deaths.
Anna Jewell, chairman of the Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce, said: “People diagnosed with a less survivable cancer are already fighting against the odds for survival.
“If we could bring the survivability of these cancers on level with the best-performing countries in the world then we could give valuable years to thousands of patients.
“If we’re going to see positive and meaningful change then all of the UK governments must commit to proactively investing in research and putting processes in place so we can speed up diagnosis and improve treatment options.”
The research also found that seven in 10 patients receive no treatment for pancreatic cancer and that of the 10,000 diagnosed annually, only 10 per cent receive surgery.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “Cancer is being diagnosed at an earlier stage, more often, with survival rates improving across almost all types of cancer, and the NHS has seen and treated record numbers of cancer patients over the past two years.”
The NHS has also said that between 2005 and 2020, five-year survival rates for all cancers have increased by eight per cent.
