Skin cancer Key Facts

• There are two main types of skin cancer: malignant melanoma which is less common but more serious; and non-melanoma skin cancer, which is very common but not so serious.

section updated 31/05/12

• Around 12,800 cases of malignant melanoma were diagnosed in 2010 in the UK, that’s around 35 people every day.
• Malignant melanoma incidence rates in Great Britain have more than quadrupled over the last thirty years.
• Like most cancers, skin cancer is more common with increasing age, but malignant melanoma is disproportionately high in younger people. More than one third of all cases of malignant melanoma occur in people under 55.
• More than two young adults (aged 15-34) are diagnosed with malignant melanoma every day in the UK, and it is the second most common cancer in this age group.
• Malignant melanoma is almost twice as common in young women (up to age 34) as in young men, but more men die from it.
• Over the last thirty years, rates of malignant melanoma in Great Britain have risen faster than any of the current top ten cancers.
• In the UK, people aged 65 and over are more likely to be diagnosed with late stage malignant melanoma than younger people.
• The most common site for men to develop a malignant melanoma is on the chest or back. For women it is on the legs.
• People from the most affluent areas are more likely to be diagnosed with malignant melanoma than those from the more deprived areas.
• Worldwide, it is estimated that almost 200,000 people were diagnosed with malignant melanoma in 2008.
• Worldwide, the highest rates of malignant melanoma are in Australia and New Zealand.
• Registration of non-melanoma skin cancer is incomplete. More than 99,500 cases were registered in 2010 but it is estimated that at least 100,000 cases are diagnosed in the UK each year.

Read more in-depth skin cancer incidence statistics.

section updated 24/07/12

• Malignant melanoma survival rates have been improving for the last twenty-five years and are now amongst the highest for any cancer.
• The latest malignant melanoma survival rates show that 84% of men and 92% of women survive the disease for at least five years after diagnosis.
• Although non-melanoma skin cancer is extremely common, in the vast majority of cases it is detected early and is not life-threatening.

Read more in-depth skin cancer survival statistics.

section reviewed 22/02/13
section updated 31/05/12

• Around 2,750 people died from skin cancer in 2010 in the UK, that's nearly 8 every day.
• Most skin cancer deaths are from malignant melanoma. In the UK in 2010 around 2,200 people died from malignant melanoma.
• Around half of all people who die from malignant melanoma are under 70 years old.
• In the UK, death rates from malignant melanoma in people aged 65 and over have almost tripled in the last 30 years.
• 9 in 10 of non-melanoma skin cancer deaths are in people age 65 and over.
• Worldwide, an estimated 46,400 people died from malignant melanoma in 2008.

Read more in-depth skin cancer mortality statistics.

section reviewed 22/02/13
section updated 31/05/12

• Sun exposure is the main cause of malignant melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers.
• In the UK around 11,100 cases of malignant melanoma each year are linked to excessive exposure to sunlight and use of sunbeds.
• Other factors that influence the risk of skin cancer are:
  • People with light eyes or hair, who sunburn easily or do not tan have an increased risk of skin cancer.
  • People with a lot of moles, unusually shaped or large moles, or a lot of freckles have a higher risk of melanoma.
  • A history of sunburn doubles the risk of melanoma and also increases the risk of non-melanoma skin cancer.
  • Use of sunbeds, especially by young people, increases the risk of skin cancer.
  • People with a previous non-melanoma skin cancer have a much higher risk of developing a second one.
  • People with a close relative diagnosed with skin cancer have a higher risk of developing it themselves.

  Read more in-depth skin cancer risk factors.

  section reviewed 22/02/13
  section updated 31/05/12

• In England, more than one quarter of a million children aged 11-17 are risking their health by seeking a tan from sunbeds.
• In England, on average, six per cent of 11-17 year olds use sunbeds.
• In Liverpool and Sunderland 50 per cent of 15-17 year-old girls aim to tan on sunbeds, and more than two in five use them at least once a week.

Read the full details of this peer reviewed research into sunbed use in children.

section reviewed 22/02/13
section updated 31/05/12

1. European age-standardised    2. Adults diagnosed    3. Latest statistics available

More detailed skin cancer statistics can be found using these links: incidence, survival, mortality, risk factors and sunbed use.

section reviewed 22/02/13
section updated 24/07/12