Death rates from cancer have fallen by 11% over the last decade, although there has been a significant rise in the number of Scots dying from liver cancer.

The mortality rate for this form of the disease jumped by 43% between 2004 and 2014, according to official figures.

This is because more people are being diagnosed with liver cancer - which has poor survival rates - with alcohol one of the main risk factors for developing it.

Cancer claimed the lives of 15,746 people in Scotland last year, with the total including 535 deaths from liver cancer.

While mortality rates for men suffering from all forms of the disease have dropped by 15% over the decade, women have seen a smaller reduction of 6%.

Death rates in the most deprived parts of Scotland are more than two-thirds higher than in the most affluent communities.

Although the overall cancer mortality rate has fallen over the last 10 years, the number of deaths has risen - with this explained by an increase in the number of elderly Scots and the fact cancer is a "relatively common" disease in this age group, according to a new NHS report.

Lung cancer remains the biggest cancer killer with 4,117 deaths - 2,119 males and 1,998 females - in 2014.

Mortality rates among men for this type of cancer have fallen by 21% over the decade but for women there has been a 2% increase.

The death rate for prostate cancer - the most frequently diagnosed form of the disease for men - has decreased by 10.3% over the ten years to 2014.

Breast cancer is the second most common cause of cancer deaths in females, with the number of women diagnosed having increased, partly because of better detection through screening.

But the mortality rate has decreased by 20% over the decade, with this said to be a consequence of both screening and advances in treatment.

Gregor McNie, senior public affairs manager for Cancer Research UK in Scotland, said: "These figures show cancer death rates are falling which, thanks to research, reflects that treatments are more effective. A cancer diagnosis is no longer the death sentence it was once feared to be.

"These new statistics also show the number of deaths from cancer is increasing and this is because people are living longer and so are more likely to get cancer.

"Diagnosing cancer earlier is also one of the most powerful ways to beat it. The chances of successful treatment are higher if the disease is found at an early stage.

"Cancer Research UK believes that no-one should be diagnosed too late to have treatment that might save their life."

Health Secretary Shona Robison said: "These are very welcome figures, showing that the rate of cancer deaths continues to fall.

"This reduction is due to improvements in early detection, through raised awareness and routine screening as well as the development of more specialist care and effective treatments.

"Of course there is more work to be done and we recognise that there is variation in mortality rates between males and females and certain tumour types."

Ms Robison stressed the importance of early diagnosis in reducing cancer mortality, adding: " That is why we have invested £39 million in our Detect Cancer Early programme.

"The main aim of the programme is to encourage all people, regardless of their personal circumstances, who have any unusual or persistent changes to their body, to visit their GP.

"The programme has resulted in a 4.7% increase in early stage diagnosis alongside a 50% increase in women consulting their GP with breast symptoms and increased uptake of the national bowel screening programme.

"The number of patients diagnosed with lung cancer at the earliest stage has also increased by 24.7% since the launch of the programme.

"Research is also very important and today we are announcing co-funding of £500,000 to support pancreatic cancer research in Scotland. This is in partnership with the Scottish Government's Chief Scientist Office, Pancreatic Cancer Scotland and Pancreatic Cancer UK."

Opposition MSPs said the rise in liver cancer mortality rates showed more needed to be done to tackle Scotland's relationship with alcohol.

Conservative health spokesman Jackson Carlaw said: "The record number of liver cancer deaths serves as a reminder that Scotland's relationship with alcohol is deep-rooted and complex.

"Even with recent improvements in consumption, it will take years, if not decades, for this to be reflected in death rates.

"We cannot afford to be complacent and we have to keep pushing the importance of responsible intake."

Liberal Democrat health spokesman Jim Hume said: "Since 2010 we have seen a 50% increase in the number of Scots dying from liver cancer. What this underlines is that we need to get serious about tackling Scotland's drink problem.

"The overall fall in the cancer mortality rate is welcome and reflects the hard work that doctors and clinical staff are doing in hospitals across Scotland. But the headline figures hide some troubling trends.

"People from the most deprived areas are 1/3 more likely to develop cancer than people from the least deprived areas and they are far more likely to die as a result of their illness."