Half of people with possible signs of cancer wait six months to contact a GP

‘A conversation with your GP could save a life,’ says Dame Cally Palmer, NHS England’s national cancer director. Photograph: Anthony Devlin/PA

Half of people with possible cancer symptoms in the UK do not contact a GP for at least six months, potentially reducing their chances of survival, research has found.

Poorer people are less likely than the better-off to see their family doctor once they have eventually sought medical help, a survey by Cancer Research UK found.