The “rather not know” attitude by people with cancer in Australia poses the greatest risk to surviving the disease, says the Cancer Institute NSW.

The institute's chief cancer officer and CEO, Professor David Currow, said a person diagnosed with the disease today has a 64 per cent chance of beating it, which is up from 49 per cent in the '80s. However, early detection messages were still not being heeded and some people would "rather not know" if they had cancer. Overall, the report showed a significant improvement in men's survival, now at 63 per cent (up from 61 per cent), with women's survival remaining steady at 66 per cent. But, the stark difference in the chance of survival comes if the disease is detected early. If the cancer is...