People living in the west of Scotland are 50% more likely to be diagnosed with lung cancer than those in the rest of the UK, according to a report released today.

People living in the west of Scotland are 50% more likely to be diagnosed with lung cancer than those in the rest of the UK, according to a report released today.

The statistics also showed that residents in the west of Scotland were 15% more likely be diagnosed with the disease than people from other parts of Scotland.

They are 30% more likely to die from lung cancer than those elsewhere in Scotland, with the rate of people dying from the disease 50% higher than in the rest of Britain.

Higher levels of deprivation were partly to blame, experts said.

The figures, contained in a report by the National Cancer Intelligence Network (NCIN), will be unveiled today at a cancer conference in Birmingham.

Professor David Forman, of the NCIN, who is based at the University of Leeds, said: "Smoking rates are around 5% higher in Scotland than the rest of the UK, and this significantly contributes to the higher rates of lung cancer - smoking is responsible for nearly nine in 10 cases of lung cancer.

"We know that smoking rates are linked to deprivation.

Rates are about 10% higher in working-class communities."

The figures, compiled this year, are based on new cancer cases and deaths recorded in 2005, before the ban on smoking in public places came into place in Scotland in 2006.

In 2005, 77 out of 100,000 people living in the west of Scotland were diagnosed with lung cancer, compared with 55 per 100,000 in the north and 64 in the south-east of the country. Across the UK, 49 per 100,000 people were diagnosed with the disease.

The rate of lung cancer among women in the west of Scotland exceeds that of men in some parts of the UK. In May, the Scottish Government launched its plan for reducing smoking rates.

Key measures include restricting the display of cigarettes in shops and taking action to reduce the amount of smuggled cigarettes.