The Guangzhou Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has reported that cancer is the leading cause of death in the city, causing 25% of all deaths, Nanfang Daily reports.

Children with cancer are comforted by a charity worker

Of the estimated 11,700 deaths from cancer in Guangzhou each year, the biggest killer is lung cancer, and there are no prizes for guessing why that is.

The chief of the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention said one in three people in the city was at risk of getting cancer and colon cancer, breast cancer and prostate cancer were all on the increase.

Lung cancer, colorectal cancer, liver cancer, breast cancer and nasopharyngeal cancer account for 54.79% of all malignant tumours.

Cervical cancer has almost doubled while prostate cancer has increased by 95.67%.

Authorities recommend locals take regular exercise, eat well and try not to get too stressed. Good luck with that.

Sufferers are encouraged to maintain a positive frame of mind. However, cancer survivor Barbara Ehrenreich’s 2010 book “Bright Sided” (published in the U.K. as “Smile or Die”) argues the case that positive thinking is hugely overrated.