BT is helping its employees reduce their cancer risk by encouraging changes in their behaviour.

It is offering all employees worldwide and pensioners (250,000 in total) advice, roadshows and interactive displays that will teach them how to spot early signs of cancer and to inform them of which lifestyles increase cancer risk.

It believes that such education can have most success in improving survival rates from breast, prostate, colon and skin cancer.

BT's chief medical officer Dr Paul Litchfield OBE said: "BT takes pride in the way it supports people who develop chronic illnesses but we want to go beyond that and help them avoid ill health in the first place so they can lead happier and more productive lives."

Around 2,000 of BT's employees have had cancer but have successfully been able to come back to work. However, another five are diagnosed with a form of cancer every week.

BT's six week campaign, which follows employee education campaigns on exercise, giving up smoking and mental health, has been carried out in conjunction with the charity Cancerbackup.

The campaign states that 40pc of cancers are preventable through giving up smoking, making changes to diet and avoiding over-exposure to the sun.