An exercise programme for colon cancer patients can cut the risk of dying by a third, a major international trial shows.

The researchers said it was "not a large amount" of exercise and any type of workout from swimming to salsa classes counted.

The results could change the way colon cancer is treated around the world.

Scientists are already investigating whether similar exercise regimes could improve survival for people with other diseases, such as breast cancer.

"It's a bit of a mind-shift, thinking of treatment as something you do, not just something you take," says researcher Prof Vicky Coyle from Queen's University Belfast.

In the trial, the three-year exercise programme started soon after chemotherapy.

The aim was to get people doing at least double the amount of exercise set out in the guidelines for the general population.

That could be three-to-four sessions of brisk walking a week, lasting 45-60 minutes, Prof Coyle says.

People got weekly face-to-face coaching sessions for the first six months, which then dropped to once a month.

The trial, involving 889 patients, put half on the exercise programme. The other half were given leaflets promoting a healthy lifestyle.

The results, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed after five years:

• 80% of people exercising remained cancer-free
• compared with 74% in the other group
• meaning a 28% reduction in the risk of the cancer coming back, or a new one forming

Meanwhile, eight years after the initial cancer treatment:

• 10% of people on the exercise programme died
• compared with 17% in the group given only health advice
• marking a 37% lower risk of death

Exactly why exercise has this beneficial effect is unknown, but ideas include the impact on growth hormones, inflammation levels in the body and how the immune system functions - which patrols the body for cancer.

Dr Joe Henson, from the University of Leicester, said the results were "exciting".

He added: "I saw first-hand that this reduced fatigue, lifted people's mood and boosted their physical strength.

"We know that physical activity regulates several key biological processes that could explain these results, and further research will help us uncover why exercise is having such a positive impact."

Colon cancer is the fourth most common cancer in the UK, with around 31,800 people diagnosed each year.

Caroline Geraghty, from Cancer Research UK, said: "This trial has the potential to transform clinical practice, but only if health services have the necessary funding and staff to make it a reality for patients."

First-time buyers are borrowing through mortgages that last an average of 31 years as the affordability of homes remains a stretch.

A decade ago, the average mortgage term for those buying a first home was 28 years, according to figures from banking trade body UK Finance.

Higher mortgage rates have pushed people to borrow for longer to keep their monthly repayments as low as possible.

Despite mortgage rates having fallen recently, these terms are showing no sign of dropping again.

Recent data showed that about two in five new mortgages had terms that see homeowners still making repayments into retirement.

Ultra-long mortgages

Lenders tend to allow mortgage terms up to a maximum of 40 years.

These have been popular among first-time buyers, many of whom are in their 30s, who are stretching their finances to allow them to buy a property.

It meant the average term for a mortgage lengthened in 2022-23, and has not really dropped since.

While many young homeowners are choosing these long mortgage terms to make repayments more manageable, they may opt for shorter terms in the future if their salaries improve or they move house.

UK Finance said the amount they initially spent on mortgage payments relative to their income was still high.

"Even as interest rates have come down, this measure of affordability has not eased significantly, with rising house prices largely offsetting any lowering of payments through falling rates," its review of household finances said.

First-time buyers were among a host of people who rushed to complete property purchases before a change in stamp duty on 1 April.

Temporary changes to thresholds, made in 2022, reverted back in April. It means buyers of properties in England and Northern Ireland now pay stamp duty on homes bought for more than £125,000. First-time buyers pay on homes bought for more than £300,000.

The UK Finance data shows that property completion numbers were much higher in the first three months of the year compared with the same period a year earlier.

This peaked in March, immediately before the deadline, when first-time buyer completions were 113% higher than the same month a year earlier. Existing homeowner completions soared by 140% over the same period.

However, data shows there has been, and will be, a significant drop-off after the deadline.

Mortgage approvals for house purchases, which is an indicator of future borrowing, decreased for the fourth consecutive month in April, according to the latest figures from the Bank of England.

That reflects some of the affordability challenges faced by new buyers.

However, various commentators have suggested there is still some momentum in the UK housing market, mainly due to low levels of unemployment.

"Despite wider economic uncertainties in the global economy, underlying conditions for potential home buyers in the UK remain supportive," said Robert Gardner, chief economist at Nationwide.

The building society said house prices rose by 0.5% in May, following a slight drop in April. It said property values were up by 3.5% over the last year, meaning the average home cost £273,427.

A corporate manslaughter investigation has been opened into failings at maternity units in Nottingham, police have said.

Nottinghamshire Police said it was examining whether maternity care provided by the Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS trust had been grossly negligent.

The trust is at the centre of the largest maternity inquiry in the history of the NHS, with about 2,500 cases being examined by independent midwife Donna Ockenden.

The police investigation will centre on two maternity units overseen by the trust, which runs the Queen's Medical Centre and Nottingham City Hospital.

In a statement on the force's website, Det Supt Matthew Croome, from the investigation team, said corporate manslaughter was a "serious criminal offence".

He said detectives were "looking to see if the overall responsibility lies with the organisation rather than specific individuals".

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Plans to fast-track the remodelling of the UK's flight paths could lead to quicker flights and fewer delays for passengers, the government says.

Ministers are set to announce the creation of the UK Airspace Design Service (UKADS) later which will re-design the routes planes must take over UK airspace - many of which were decided around 70 years ago.

The initial shake-up will focus on modernising the complex airspace in and around London.

Cagne, a community aviation and environment group for Kent, Surrey, and Sussex, has warned the plans could mean there would be new flight paths over houses that are not currently affected.

Ministers say the plans could allow planes to climb quicker during take off and descend more smoothly.

The plans are also aiming at helping reduce aviation's climate change impacts and pave the way for new technologies like flying taxis.

"Modernising our airspace is also one of the simplest ways to help reduce pollution from flying and will set the industry up for a long-term, sustainable future," aviation minister, Mike Kane, said.

The changes would allow the largest re-design of UK airspace since it was first formed in the 1950s.

A couple who were seriously injured in the Smiler rollercoaster crash at Alton Towers say they can "never move on" from it, but still "couldn't be happier".

Now married, Leah Washington-Pugh, then 17 and 18-year-old Joe Pugh, from South Yorkshire, were on a date when their Smiler carriage rammed into another at the Staffordshire theme park, 10 years ago.

Leah's legs were crushed, forcing the amputation of her left leg above the knee whilst both of Joe's kneecaps were shattered and some of his fingers severed in the crash, they said was "equivalent to driving into a car at 90mph".

The crash, on 2 June 2015, led to operator Merlin being fined £5m, with compensation paid to the 16 victims.

Speaking through their legal representatives, the pair said despite going through some dark times they had "definitely come a long way" since the crash.

Remembering the day, the couple said they had made a beeline for the ride as soon as they had entered the park.

Technical difficulties had delayed them getting on, but "I never thought anything of it," said Leah.

After eventually setting off, their carriage had "gone around a corner and crashed straight into the empty cart," she explained.

"I think if I remember rightly if you compare it to a car accident it was the equivalent of driving into a car at 90 miles and hour, it was pretty severe," added Joe.

"And then I looked down at my legs and realised that something wasn't right," said Leah.

"I looked at Joe and Joe's little finger was hanging off."

Stranded on the ride for about four hours, she credits emergency workers for saving her life.

"The air ambulance was flying in blood for me because I was just losing that much," she said.

"If it wasn't for the air ambulance and other services on the day I know I wouldn't be here today."

'Learn to live again'

Following her rescue, Leah spent five days in intensive care and was in hospital for eight weeks.

After being discharged "navigating life in normal surroundings was quite difficult at the start," she said.

"We had to learn not only how to walk again and live again, but how to build a relationship again with each other," added Joe.

The couple said supporting each other through their recovery had been "really important".

"Yes, our injuries were there and everything else around us was going off, but we still had that relationship and friendship and that got us through everything."

"Fast forward 10 years we're both really happy," continued Joe.

"We're now married, we're almost a year into us marriage, we've got a beautiful home together we couldn't be happier."

The crash was "utterly shocking" and "unlike anything that had ever happened the world over," according to one industry expert.

Vicky Balch, of Leyland, Lancashire, also needed a partial leg amputation after the crash.

"Knowing quite a bit about the theme park industry, it was a shock as to how it could have happened and what would have been the cause," said European Coaster Club journalist Marcus Gaines.

"The incident attracted worldwide attention which shows how rare and unusual it was and what a major incident it was," he added.

Merlin Attractions Operations Ltd admitted breaches of the Health and Safety Act in what bosses called "the most serious incident" in Alton Towers' history.

Imposing the fine on Merlin, Judge Michael Chambers QC said the crash had been foreseeable, but accepted the company which owns Alton Towers had subsequently taken full and extensive steps to remedy the problems that led to it happening.

'Unprecedented'

Mr Gaines added that at the time the UK was recognised as one of the leading experts in amusement park safety.

"Lots of other countries don't have any real regulation about ride safety," he said.

He said safety measures put in place since the crash included visual checks where staff physically inspect the entire length of the track to ensure it is clear.

"We've had this horrific accident, but it is unprecedented that that accident happened," Mr Gaines continued.

"I think the fact that we haven't seen anything like that before, and we've not seen anything like it in the 10 years since, shows what high standards we do have in the UK."

Reflecting on a decade since the crash, Leah said: "You've always got to find the positive in the negative and just got to grab life, because it's so precious, and make the most of it".

The couple are using the anniversary to host a ball to support the Staffordshire Air Ambulance, Yorkshire Air Ambulance and the LimbBo Foundation, a charity which supports limb-different children.

The events of 2015 were "tragic", Leigh added, but had also "fetched a lot of happiness and experiences that we would never have had".

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The death toll after deadly floods hit the Nigerian town of Mokwa on Thursday has risen to more than 200, officials say.

There are still 500 people missing in the town in north-central Niger State, as a search mission continues.

The deputy chairman of Mokwa Local Government, Musa Kimboku, told the BBC that rescue efforts have ceased because authorities no longer believe anyone could still be alive.

The floods, said to be worst in the area for 60 years, swept through the towns of Tiffin Maza and Anguwan Hausawa after a bout of torrential rain.

In an effort to prevent disease in the area, authorities will soon start to dig out corpses buried underground, Mokwa's district head Muhammadu Aliyu said.

Recounting scenes of catastrophe, local residents told the BBC that they saw their homes and family members get washed away.

One man, Adamu Yusuf, lost his wife and newborn baby.

"I watched helplessly as water washed away my family. I survived because I could swim," he told the BBC.

Another resident, Saliu Sulaiman, said the floods had left him homeless and destroyed some of his cash business profits.

"I lost at least $1,500 to the floods. It was the proceeds from the sale of my farm produce the previous day. I contemplated going back into the room to get it, but the pressure of the water scared me."

On Sunday, the National Emergency Management Agency (Nema) announced it had started the process of providing relief packages to people affected.

The agency added in a post on Facebook that roads and bridges were also affected by the flood, which has had a knock-on effect on the local economy and traffic.

The Nigerian Red Cross also released a statement on Friday saying the floods had caused "significant loss of life and widespread distress".

Floods are not uncommon during the Nigerian rainy season, which lasts from April until October.

In 2024, Nigeria experienced flooding from heavy rain which caused deaths and drove people from their homes.

There was also severe flooding in 2022, when more than 600 people died and 1.3 million were displaced.

More BBC News stories about Nigeria:

• Could Nigeria's careful ethnic balancing act be under threat?
• Blank questions, power cuts and a suicide: Nigeria's exams fiasco
• 'How I survived Nigeria attack that killed my 16 friends'

Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.

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