Cancer has become the disease with the highest incidence of death in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, with 248 of every 100,000 residents suffering some form of cancer in 2013 and a death rate of 144 in every 100,000, Guangzhou Daily reported.

In urban areas, 313 of every 100,000 residents have cancer, according to statistics from the Guangzhou Center of Disease Control quoted by the newspaper on Monday.

Cancer annually accounts for more than one-fourth of all deaths from disease in the southern metropolis, the city’s disease control authority said.

Around 12,000 people with household registrations in Guangzhou die of cancer annually.

Lung cancer is the most common disease in Guangzhou, with 47 of every 100,000 residents diagnosed.

It is followed by large intestine cancer, with an incidence rate of 33 in every 100,000, and breast cancer and liver cancer, which each has a rate of 25 sufferers in every 100,000 residents.

The incidence of cancer in Guangdong province is 23.5 percent higher than the countrys average, while the death rate is 7.5 percent higher than the national average.