THE Bolton Evening News on Thursday launched a campaign to make Bolton a healthier town by demanding smokers Stub It Out in public buildings.

Here are the hard facts of our Stub It Out campaign:

Twenty-nine per cent of Bolton's population are smokers. This means 76,502 residents are at risk of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and 15,300 will become sufferers.

The Royal Bolton Hospital admits 698 people a year with attacks of COPD.

Around 180 cases of lung cancer are diagnosed in Bolton every year -- including some non-smokers.

They are frightening statistics and they are why we want readers to sign our petition demanding that smokers Stub It Out in pubs, restaurants, cafes and workplaces.

Every Friday, the Bolton Evening News Fit For Life series has been campaigning to make Bolton a healthier place to live, work and visit. Now we want YOU to help us put pressure on the council and the government to take action to make Bolton a smoke-free zone.

Dr Brian Bradley, a consultant in the thoracic department at the Royal Bolton Hospital, is in the front line treating people with life-threatening smoking-related conditions.

He is backing our campaign. He says it is vital that people give up smoking before it is too late.

"People get COPD after smoking for many years, but the sad thing about it is that once you've got it, the damage is done. You can't reverse it, " he said. "We can try and control it with drugs and oxygen at home but the only thing we can offer is a lung transplant. That only happens in the most serious cases -- and only a few times a year."

So far four patients in Bolton this year have been offered a transplant.

Dr Bradley said: "Patients often ask how long they've got and patients can live for many years with treatment, but there are only two things that will make a difference to survival: stopping smoking and home oxygen therapy.

"People with respiratory diseases tend to blame themselves and it is difficult because it doesn't help them to come to terms with their condition. But we don't judge people here, we just want to treat them.

"When they have a smoking-related lung disease, trying to get them to stop smoking is sometimes hard.

"We would never blame them for that. No-one sets out to get addicted to cigarettes.

"But we can't provide anyone with oxygen at home until they have stopped smoking because of the obvious dangers."

Nicotine replacement therapy was a great help to people wanting to stop, he said.

Dr Bradley said the key to survival was early diagnosis.

"Patients in Bolton tend to leave their problems until very late and by the time I see them, they are already very poorly," he said.

"Some have a very aggressive strain of lung cancer and can die very quickly. I would urge anyone who is experiencing breathing problems to visit their GP early on so an X-Ray can be arranged."