Men are almost 40 per cent more likely to die from cancer than women, with a tendency to play down symptoms and adopt more unhealthy lifestyles, research suggests.

A report by the National Cancer Intelligence Network (NCIN) and Cancer Research UK has found unexpectedly high rates of cancer diagnosis and death among men.

After excluding from the analysis cancers such as breast and prostate cancer, researchers found that men were almost 70 per cent more likely to die from cancer and over 60 per cent more likely to develop a form of the disease.

Professor David Forman, of NCIN, said: “For many of the cancers that affect both sexes, there’s no known biological reason why men should be at a greater risk than women, so we were surprised to see such consistent differences.”

He said that the male “stiff upper lip” and a tendency to be less health conscious were likely factors.

“What we see from this report could be a reflection of this attitude, meaning men are less likely to make lifestyle changes that could reduce their risk and less likely to go to their doctor. Late diagnosis makes most forms of the disease harder to treat.”

The report showed that in 2006 in the UK, 293,601 people had cancer diagnosed — 147,223 men and 146,378 women. In the UK in 2007, there were 155,464 deaths from cancer — 80,907 in men and 74,557 in women.

But the death rates are 211.3 per 100,000 in males and 153.1 per 100,000 in females owing to a combination of different life expectancy and the increased likelihood of men having more fatal cancers than women.

Professor Alan White of Leeds Metropolitan University, who is chairman of the Men’s Health Forum, said: “The evidence shows that men are generally not aware that smoking, carrying excess weight around the waist, having a high alcohol intake and a poor diet — and their family history — all contribute to an increased risk of developing and dying prematurely from cancer.”

Professor Mike Richards, the Government’s cancer adviser, said that a new programme — Ahead of the Game — would seek to change men’s attitutes.

“This one-year pilot programme will use the appeal of football to raise awareness of lung, bowel and prostate cancers in men aged 55 and over, and selected clubs will receive funding to target local men over 55 and raise cancer awareness.

"Through new approaches we hope to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of cancer, and encourage men with symptoms to seek help earlier.”

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