An increasing number of cancer victims who return to work after treatment face discrimination, researchers say.

The Macmillan Cancer Support, a cancer charity and patient support company in the UK, conducted the study and found that about four in 10 people (37 percent) say they feel some sort of discrimination from employers and co-workers following cancer treatment. This was an increase from the 2010 study that revealed 23 percent of recovering people experienced discrimination.

"When I told my employer that I'd been diagnosed with cancer and asked to have some time off for treatment, I was given the sack," Paul Ware, a 46 year old diagnosed with blood cancer, told Macmillan. "They said they couldn't employ someone who was not a hundred percent committed. It was a shock as I had a very successful career, and a fulfilling life."

"I took them to an employment tribunal through a solicitor. But it was costing so much I had no money left to fight for my legal rights. I was paid a financial settlement. It wasn't a lot, and it's gone just trying to keep the bills paid. It's been a most soul destroying experience and I have never felt more alone than now, trying to regain my place in society with a new job," said Ware.

In addition, some workers experienced harassment at work, with one in 10 UK adults (9 percent) reporting that they left as a result, while one in eight (13 percent) say their employers refused to accommodate changes that allow them to work, according to a YouGov survey in the UK.

"Employers are risking prosecution by flouting their legal responsibility to protect people living with cancer from unfair treatment and stigma at work," said Ciaran Devane, chief executive at Macmillan.

"There needs to be far more understanding of cancer and how the effects of treatment may impact on people returning to work. Going back to work after treatment can be very isolating especially if someone has been off for a while and has lost confidence or contact with colleagues."

In the UK, more than 100,000 people of the working class are diagnosed with cancer annually.

"As our population grows and ages, and the retirement age rises, cancer will become an increasingly common issue for employees and their managers. It's vital they are equipped to help people with cancer stay in work. It isn't difficult and it is likely to be cheaper and easier than recruiting a replacement or defending a discrimination claim," added Devane.

Discrimination is not only in the UK. In the United States nearly 40 percent of more than one million Americans are diagnosed with cancer every year and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says that some cancer victims also face barriers in workplaces.

As the UK enforces the Equality Act 2010, which encourages employers to make changes in the work environment to accommodate an employee's plans, the United States has the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).