Nearly one in four cancer patients in England is diagnosed only when they arrive at hospital in an emergency, a national study suggests.
The National Cancer Intelligence Network (NCIN), which looked at data from diagnoses in 2007, found 23% of cases had been detected at that stage.
In the cases of acute leukaemia and brain cancer, half of cases were only discovered at a critical stage.
Cancer Research UK said more education was needed to recognise symptoms.
The NCIN report suggested those who were diagnosed only at the emergency stage were more likely to die within a year than those diagnosed earlier.
Harpal Kumar, the chief executive of Cancer Research UK, told the Daily Telegraph: "The figure for diagnoses via emergency presentations is way too high.
"This statistic helps explain why we have lower survival rates than we would hope to have, lower than the best countries in Europe.
"Start Quote
End Quote Sara Hiom Cancer Research UKWe hope the government will seriously consider the best way to tackle this problem in their revised cancer strategy"
"We need screening programmes to be rolled out as early as possible and GPs given rapid access to the tests that will enable patients to be moved quickly through the system."
The survey suggested those on low incomes, elderly people and the under-25s were the most likely to be diagnosed at a late stage.
Only 3% of skin cancers went undetected until the emergency stage, compared with 58% of brain cancers.
Sara Hiom, director of health information at Cancer Research UK, said the late diagnosis levels were "alarmingly high".
She said: "We hope the government will seriously consider the best way to tackle this problem in their revised cancer strategy, which is due in the coming months."
A spokesman for the Department of Health said: "We are committed to improving cancer outcomes. Earlier diagnosis is crucial to match the best survival rates in Europe."
Last December, government cancer tsar Professor Mike Richards said the NHS in England needed to get better at diagnosing cancers at an earlier stage if it was to continue to improve survival rates.
He called for a greater focus on one-year survival rates, an indication that cancer was spotted at a treatable stage.
Posts
Have you had cancer diagnosed at a late stage? What was your experience? What can be done to improve the UK's detection rate for cancer? Use the form below to send us your experiences and comments.