LUDLOW and south Shropshire is doing better than the national average when it comes to confronting cancer.

This is according to figures from Ludlow MP Philip Dunne who is also a Minister of the Department for Health.

Philip Dunne MP has welcomed research compiled by Cancer Research UK, which he says show the Ludlow constituency is ahead of the national average in preventing cancer.

The research shows the number of people seen by a specialist within two weeks of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer is above average, at 94.8 per cent. In addition, 98.2 per cent of patients receive radiotherapy within 31 days of the first treatment in Shropshire.

In preventing cancers, the Ludlow constituency ranks highly, with smoking rates in South Shropshire at just 14.6 per cent of adults, below the national average of 16.9 per cent. South Shropshire also outperforms the national average in screening for bowel cancers, with the proportion of 60-69 year olds who have been screened successfully at 61.9 per cent, above the England average of 57.9 per cent.

Philip Dunne said that the figures show that people living in south Shropshire and those that care for them take prevention seriously.

“I was particularly pleased to note that south Shropshire has a lower percentage of smokers than England as whole – but I encourage smokers thinking of quitting to use the help and support available through the Stoptober campaign this month to take their first steps towards quitting for good,” he said.