A new immunotherapy cancer drug boosts survival rate five-fold, scientists from Yale have found.

Patients with advanced lung cancer were far more likely to be alive after five years, compared with those given standard chemotherapy.

The immunotherapy drug nivolumab, which is used for several cancers, works by blocking a protein that stops the immune system attacking cancer cells.

The drug helps the patient's own immune system find and destroy cancer cells as they spread.

New research presented at the World Conference on Lung Cancer in Barcelona shows the drug can have a powerful effect in extending survival for people with advanced lung cancer who have few treatment options.

It is the first time clinical data has been presented showing how patients are faring after five years on the medicine.