Cancer patients 20 per cent more likely to take own lives in first six months following diagnosis

Cancer patients are up to four and a half times more likely to commit suicide after diagnosis than the general population, researchers claimed yesterday.

While the risk of suicide was higher among all those diagnosed with cancer, a study has shown the danger is even greater with certain types.

Researchers examined data on more than four million cancer patients from between 1995 and 2015, and identified more than 2,000 cancer patients who had killed themselves.

Suicide risk was greatest in the first six months following diagnosis, but it remained high for at least two years, experts from Public Health England and University College London found.

Overall, a patient’s likelihood of committing suicide was 20 per cent higher than the general population. 

But those with pancreatic, oesophageal, lung and stomach cancers were at greater risk.

However, mesothelioma patients – among whom the risk was highest – were 4.51 times more likely to take their life. 

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