Anti-smoking shock campaign

Anti-smoking shock campaign

A series of hard-hitting government adverts featuring people smoking cigarettes with a tumour bulging from them is being launched in England.

The ads will tell smokers that just 15 cigarettes can cause a mutation that leads to cancerous tumours in what marks a return to shock campaigning.

It is eight years since government's "fatty cigarette" anti-smoking adverts appeared.

This £2.7m ad campaign will appear on TV, online and posters until February.

Smokers will also be told about NHS quit kits that are available free from pharmacies.

Chief medical officer Prof Dame Sally Davies said smokers were still underestimating the serious health risks from smoking.

"We want smokers to understand that each packet of cigarettes increases their risk of cancer."

The adverts follow the Stoptober campaign, which saw more than 270,000 sign up in a mass attempt to quit two months ago.

The ad campaign has received the backing of Cancer Research UK.

Its chief executive Dr Harpal Kumar said: "Hard-hitting campaigns such as this illustrate the damage caused by smoking and this can encourage people to quit or may even stop them from starting in the first place."