[Photo/Xinhua]

The World Health Organization (WHO) Friday launched a new guidance to better improve the chances of survival for people living with cancer by ensuring that health services focus on diagnosing and treating the disease earlier.

The new guide came right before the World Cancer Day, which falls on Feb 4.

WHO said new figures released this week indicate that 8.8 million people died from cancer each year, mostly in low and middle-income countries.

One problem is that many cancer cases are diagnosed too late. Even in countries with optimal health systems and services, many cancer cases are diagnosed at an advanced stage, when they are harder to treat successfully.

"Today, almost one in six deaths globally are cancer or cancer related, more than 40 million people diagnosed with cancer every year," Etienne Krug, director of WHO's Department for the Management of Noncommunicable Diseases,

Disability, Violence and Injury Prevention, told a press conference.

He added that cancer registered as the second leading cause of death in the world, following cardiovascular diseases.