§ Ms PrimaroloTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the five most common cancers among NHS patients.
§ Mr. SackvilleIn 1987, the latest year for which information is available, cancer registration statistics for England and Wales show that the most common malignant neoplasms registered were:
Total number of registrations Percentages Male Lung 25,440 23 Skin 14,796 14 Large intestine and rectum 12,268 11 Prostrate 10,837 10 Bladder 7,153 7 Female Breast 23,742 22 Skin 14,593 14 Large intestine and rectum 12,779 12 Lung 10,838 10 Leukaemias and lymphomas 6,223 6
§ Ms PrimaroloTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what is her estimate of the annual number of preventable cases of primary liver cancer; and what are the chief causes of those cases.
§ Mr. SackvilleThis information is not available centrally. In 1991, 510 men and 242 women died from primary liver cancer. Excessive consumption of alcohol and the hepatitis B virus are among the main contributing factors.