Cancer incidence for common cancers

Common cancers

More than half of new cases of cancer are breast, prostate, lung or bowel cancer, 2015-2017, UK.

Most common in males

More than half of new cases of cancer in males are prostate, lung or bowel cancer, 2015-2017, UK.

Most common in females

More than half of new cases of cancer in females are breast, lung or bowel cancer, 2015-2017, UK.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, accounting for 3 in 20 (15%) of all cases in females and males combined (2016-2018).[1-4] The next most common cancers in UK people are prostate (14%), lung (13%), and bowel (11%). Though there are more than 200 types of cancer, just these four types - breast, prostate, lung and bowel - together account for more than half (53%) of all new cases in the UK (2016-2018).[1-4] The two most common cancer types occur mainly or exclusively in only one sex.

The 20 Most Common Cancers, UK, 2016-2018

This chart excludes non-melanoma skin cancer because of known under-reporting. Data in this chart do not sum to the all cancers combined total provided elsewhere, because 'brain, other CNS (central nervous system) and intracranial tumours' includes tumours that are malignant, and non-malignant but only the malignant tumours are included in 'all cancers combined' total.

References

  1. Data were provided by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (part of Public Health England), on request through the Office for Data Release, July 2021. Similar data can be found here: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/conditionsanddiseases/bulletins/cancerregistrationstatisticsengland/previousReleases
  2. Data were provided by ISD Scotland on request, April 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Cancer/Publications.
  3. Data were published by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/cancer-incidence-in-wales-2002-2018/, March 2021.
  4. Data were provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry on request, May 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/.

About this data

Data is for UK, 2016-2018, ICD-10 C00-C97 excl. C44.

Data was not available for Wales in 2018 for ICD-10 D32-D33, D35.2-D35.4, D42-D43, D44.3-D44.5, therefore the 2018 data was extrapolated using the 2017 figures.

Last reviewed:

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in UK males, accounting for more than a quarter (27%) of male cases (2016-2018).[1-4] The next most common cancers in UK males are lung cancer (13%) and bowel cancer (12%). Prostate, lung and bowel cancers together account for more than half (53%) of all new cases in males in the UK. One of the ten most common cancers in males is sex-specific (prostate), compared with two of the ten most common cancers in females (uterus and ovary). Head and neck, bladder, oesophageal cancers and leukaemia, are among the UK ten most common cancers in males, but not in females.

The Three Most Common Cancers in Males, Percentages of All Cancer Cases Excluding Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer (C00-C97 excl. C44), UK, 2016-2018

This chart excludes non-melanoma skin cancer because of known under-reporting.

The Ten Most Common Cancers in Males, Annual Average Numbers of New Cases, UK, 2016-2018

This chart excludes non-melanoma skin cancer because of known under-reporting.

References

  1. Data were provided by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (part of Public Health England), on request through the Office for Data Release, July 2021. Similar data can be found here: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/conditionsanddiseases/bulletins/cancerregistrationstatisticsengland/previousReleases
  2. Data were provided by ISD Scotland on request, April 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Cancer/Publications.
  3. Data were published by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/cancer-incidence-in-wales-2002-2018/, March 2021.
  4. Data were provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry on request, May 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/.

About this data

Data is for UK, 2016-2018, ICD-10 C00-C97 excl. C44.

Last reviewed:

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in UK females, accounting for almost a third (30%) of all female cases (2016-2018).[1-4] The next most common cancers in UK females are lung cancer (13%) and bowel cancer (10%). Breast, lung and bowel cancers together account for over half (54%) of all new cases in females in the UK. Two of the ten most common cancers in females are sex-specific (uterus and ovary), compared with one of the ten most common cancers in males (prostate). Breast, brain, other CNS and intracranial tumours and pancreatic cancer are among the ten most common cancers in females, but not in males.

The Three Most Common Cancers in Females, Percentages of All Cancer Cases Excluding Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer (C00-C97 excl. C44), UK, 2016-2018

This chart excludes non-melanoma skin cancer because of known under-reporting.

The Ten Most Common Cancers in Females, Annual Average Numbers of New Cases, UK, 2016-2018

This chart excludes non-melanoma skin cancer because of known under-reporting. Data in this chart do not sum to the all cancers combined total provided elsewhere, because 'brain, other CNS (central nervous system) and intracranial' includes tumours that are malignant and non-malignant but only the malignant tumours are included in 'all cancers combined' total.

References

  1. Data were provided by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (part of Public Health England), on request through the Office for Data Release, July 2021. Similar data can be found here: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/conditionsanddiseases/bulletins/cancerregistrationstatisticsengland/previousReleases
  2. Data were provided by ISD Scotland on request, April 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Cancer/Publications.
  3. Data were published by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/cancer-incidence-in-wales-2002-2018/, March 2021.
  4. Data were provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry on request, May 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/.

About this data

Data is for UK, 2016-2018, ICD-10 C00-C97 excl. C44.

Data was not available for Wales in 2018 for ICD-10 D32-D33, D35.2-D35.4, D42-D43, D44.3-D44.5, therefore the 2018 data was extrapolated using the 2017 figures.

Last reviewed:

Incidence trends over the last decade in the UK vary by cancer type and sex.[1-4] For most cancer types, incidence trends largely reflect changing prevalence of risk factors and improvements in diagnosis and data recording. Recent incidence trends are influenced by risk factor prevalence in years past.

Thyroid cancer has shown the fastest increase in incidence over the past decade in the UK in females (65%) and males (68%), followed by liver cancer (38% in females and 46% in males), within the current 20 most common UK cancers in females and males. In females, kidney cancer, melanoma skin cancer, and head and neck cancers have shown the next-fastest increases in incidence. In males, melanoma skin cancer, kidney cancer and Hodgkin lymphoma have shown the next-fastest increases in incidence.

Cancer of unknown primary has shown the fastest decrease in incidence over the past decade in the UK in females (34%) and males (33%), followed by stomach cancer (29% in females and 33% in males), within the current 20 most common UK cancers in females and males.

For lung and oesophageal cancers, the incidence trend differs between the sexes. In females lung cancer incidence has increased, while in males it has decreased. In females, oesophageal cancer incidence has decreased, while in males it has remained stable.

The 20 Most Common Cancers 2018, Percentage Change in European Age-Standardised Three Year Average Incidence Rates, Females, UK, 2006-2008 and 2016-2018

The 20 Most Common Cancers 2018, Percentage Change in European Age-Standardised Three Year Average Incidence Rates, Males, UK, 2006-2008 and 2016-2018

References

  1. Data were provided by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (part of Public Health England), on request through the Office for Data Release, July 2021. Similar data can be found here: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/conditionsanddiseases/bulletins/cancerregistrationstatisticsengland/previousReleases
  2. Data were provided by ISD Scotland on request, April 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Cancer/Publications.
  3. Data were published by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/cancer-incidence-in-wales-2002-2018/, March 2021.
  4. Data were provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry on request, May 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/.

About this data

Data is for UK, 2006-2008 and 2016-2018 ICD-10 codes All cancers excluding non-melanoma skin cancer (C00-C97 excl. C44), Bladder (C67), Bowel (C18-C20), Brain, Other CNS and Intracranial Tumours (C70-C72, C75.1-C75.3, D32-D33, D35.2-D35.4, D42-D43, D44.3-D44.5), Breast (C50), Cancer of Unknown Primary (C77-80), Cervix (C53), Head and Neck (C00-C14, C30-C32), Hodgkin Lymphoma (C81), Kidney (C64-C66,C68), Leukaemia (C91-C95), Liver (C22), Lung (C33-C34), Melanoma Skin Cancer (C43), Mesothelioma (C45), Myeloma (C90), Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (C82-C86), Oesophagus (C15), Ovary (C56-C57.4), Pancreas (C25), Prostate (C61), Stomach (C16), Testis (C62), Thyroid (C73) and Uterus (C54-C55).

Last reviewed:

Incidence rates are projected to rise for most types of cancer in the UK between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040.[1] Among cancer types where rates are projected to rise, the size of the overall increase between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040 ranges from less than 1% (breast cancer) to 50% (eye cancer).

For a smaller number of cancer types, incidence rates are projected to fall in the UK between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040. Among cancer types where rates are projected to fall, the size of the overall decrease between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040 ranges from 2% (lung cancer) to 27% (mesothelioma).

For almost all cancer types – even those where age-standardised incidence rates are projected to fall – absolute numbers of cases are projected to rise because of population growth and ageing.

These projections reflect past trends in cancer incidence. They do not model the possible impact of current or future changes which may increase or decrease cancer incidence. For cervical cancer and other HPV-related cancers (pharyngeal, anal, vulval, penile, vaginal and oral cavity), HPV vaccination is expected to substantially decrease future incidence.[2,3]

Selected Cancers, European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates and Average Annual Number of New Cases, Females, UK, 2023-2025 and 2038-2040

  Age-standardised Rate (per 100,000 females) Average Annual Cases
  2023-2025 (Projected)  2038-2040 (Projected)  % Change 2023-2025 (Projected)  2038-2040 (Projected)  % Change
Breast 175 175 0 61839 69912 13
Lung 75 78 3 27916 34835 25
Bowel 53 51 -4 19665 22594 15
Uterus 29 29 -2 10587 11797 11
Melanoma skin 29 33 13 10255 13198 29
Ovary 23 24 5 8120 9386 16
Brain, other CNS and intracranial 19 18 -3 6713 7263 8
Kidney 16 18 12 5941 7705 30
Pancreas 16 17 4 6001 7653 28
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma 16 14 -13 5777 5883 2
Leukaemia 13 13 -4 4844 5545 14
Head and neck 12 12 3 4218 4947 17
Cancer of unknown primary 10 8 -14 3766 4067 8
Thyroid 10 11 15 3229 3960 23
Oesophagus 8 8 -5 3159 3680 16
Myeloma 8 8 1 2882 3493 21
Bladder 7 6 -12 2818 3122 11
Liver 7 8 8 2636 3489 32
Stomach 6 5 -11 2186 2386 9
Vulva 4 5 5 1563 1966 26

Download the data table (xlsx)

Selected Cancers, European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates and Average Annual Number of New Cases, Males, UK, 2023-2025 and 2038-2040

  Age-standardised Rate (per 100,000 males) Average Annual Cases
  2023-2025 (Projected)   2038-2040 (Projected)   % Change   2023-2025 (Projected)   2038-2040 (Projected)  % Change 
Prostate 194 223 15 62526 85095 36
Lung 86 80 -7 27446 31353 14
Bowel 73 65 -11 23159 25142 9
Melanoma skin 33 35 5 10559 13334 26
Kidney 33 38 16 10402 14192 36
Head and neck 31 31 3 9830 11372 16
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma 24 22 -10 7793 8319 7
Leukaemia 24 23 -3 7574 8918 18
Bladder 22 19 -16 6990 7538 8
Oesophagus 22 21 -6 7112 8027 13
Pancreas 20 21 5 6509 8385 29
Brain, other CNS and intracranial 18 18 -4 5892 6369 8
Liver 15 16 4 4917 6192 26
Stomach 13 11 -13 4109 4453 8
Myeloma 12 12 0 3967 4849 22
Cancer of unknown primary 12 10 -12 3701 4146 12
Testis 7 7 -6 2370 2312 -2
Mesothelioma 7 5 -29 2175 1988 -9
Small intestine 4 6 37 1410 2302 63
Hodgkin lymphoma 4 5 14 1418 1724 22

Download the data table (xlsx)

Thyroid cancer has the fastest-increasing projected incidence rates in females, rising by more than 15% between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040. Small intestine cancer has the fastest-increasing projected incidence rates in males, rising by more than 37% between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040.

The Five Cancers with the Highest Projected Percentage Change in European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates, Females, UK, 2023-2025 to 2038-2040

Download this data (xlsx)

The Five Cancers with the Highest Projected Percentage Change in European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates, Males, UK, 2023-2025 to 2038-2040

Download this data (xlsx)

References

Calculated by the Cancer Intelligence Team at Cancer Research UK, February 2023. Age-period-cohort modelling approach described here, using 2020-based population projections (Office for National Statistics) and observed cancer incidence (1975-2018 for England, Scotland and Wales, 1993-2018 for Northern Ireland).

About this data

Projections are based on incidence data from 1975-2018 (England, Scotland and Wales) and 1993-2018 (Northern Ireland). ICD-10 codes C00-C97 excluding C44; bladder C67; bowel C18-C20; brain, other CNS and intracranial tumours C70-C72, C75.1-C75.3, D32-D33, D35.2-D35.4, D42-D43, D44.3-D44.5; breast C50; cancer of unknown primary C77-C80; head and neck C00-C14, C30-C32; Hodgkin lymphoma C81; kidney C64-C66, C68; leukaemia C91-C95; liver C22; lung C33-C34; melanoma skin C43; mesothelioma C45; myeloma C90; non-Hodgkin lymphoma C82-C86; oesophageal C15; ovarian C56-C57.4; pancreatic C25; prostate C61; small instestine C17; stomach C16; testicular C62; thyroid C73; uterine C54-C55; vulval C51. Cancer types in the tables above are projected to have the most new cases in 2023-2025 in males or females. Incidence data for thyroid cancer in males and cervical cancer in females were not appropriate for projections; while these cancer sites appear in the top 20 common cancers for males and females, respectively, they have been excluded from the list of common cancers.

Projections are based on observed incidence rates and therefore implicitly include changes in cancer risk factors and diagnosis. Confidence intervals are not calculated for the projected figures. Projections are by their nature uncertain because unexpected events in future could change the trend. It is not sensible to calculate a boundary of uncertainty around these already uncertain point estimates. Changes are described as "increase" "decrease" if there is any difference between the point estimates.

More on projections methodology

Last reviewed:

Cancer incidence rates (European age-standardised (AS) rates Open a glossary item) in England are higher in the most deprived quintile compared with the least, for most cancer types (2013-2017).[1] The deprivation gap in cancer incidence is generally largest for smoking-related cancer types, reflecting longstanding higher smoking prevalence in more deprived groups.[2]

For a small group of cancer types, incidence rates are higher in the least deprived quintile compared with the most. This reflects higher exposure to some risk factors in less deprived groups: more sun exposure (related to melanoma skin cancer);[3] later first pregnancy, lower parity and higher postmenopausal hormone use (related to female breast cancer).[4] It also reflects higher uptake of breast screening and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing in less deprived groups.[5,6]

Percentage Difference in European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population Between Most and Least Deprived Quintiles, Females, England, 2013-2017

This chart includes only cancer types with a statistically significant difference in age-standardised rates between most and least deprived quintiles.

Percentage Difference in European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population Between Most and Least Deprived Quintiles, Males, England, 2013-2017

This chart includes only cancer types with a statistically significant difference in age-standardised rates between most and least deprived quintiles.
 

It is estimated that each year in England there are around 27,200 more cases of cancer types where incidence rates are higher in more deprived quintiles, than there would be if incidence rates in all deprivation quintiles matched those of the least deprived quintile. The corresponding figure for the UK – based on the England figures above, plus devolved nations data – is around 33,800.[1,7-9] Lung cancer is by far the largest contributor to these excess cases, reflecting the high incidence of this cancer type overall, and the large difference in lung cancer incidence between the most and least deprived quintiles.

The number of excess cases is partly offset by those cancer types where incidence rates are lower in more deprived quintiles: for those cancer types it is estimated that each year in England there are around 10,700 fewer cases than there would be if incidence rates in all deprivation quintiles matched those of the least deprived quintile. The corresponding figure for the UK is around 11,900.[1,7-9] The cancer types contributing most of this total are melanoma skin cancer, prostate cancer, and female breast cancer.

These figures are calculated as the sum of cases observed, minus the sum of cases expected if every deprivation quintile had the same age-specific crude incidence rates (age-specific crude rates for England, age-standardised rates all ages combined for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland) as the least deprived quintile. Only cancer types with a statistically significant difference in age-standardised rates between most and least deprived quintiles are included in these figures.

References

  1. Calculated by the Cancer Intelligence Team at Cancer Research UK, April 2020. Based on method reported in National Cancer Intelligence Network Cancer by Deprivation in England Incidence, 1996-2010 Mortality, 1997-2011. Using cancer incidence data 2013-2017 (Public Health England) and population data 2013-2017 (Office for National Statistics) by Indices of Multiple Deprivation 2015 income domain quintile, cancer type, sex, and five-year age band.
  2. Jefferis BJMH, Power C, Graham H, Manor O. Changing Social Gradients in Cigarette Smoking and Cessation Over Two Decades of Adult Follow-Up in a British Birth Cohort. J Public Health (Oxf) 2004;26(1):13-8.
  3. Suppa M, Gandini S, Bulliard JL, et al. Who, Why, Where: An Overview of Determinants of Sunbed Use in Europe. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol 2019;33 Suppl 2:6-12.
  4. Lundqvist A, Andersson E, Ahlberg I, Nilbert M, Gerdtham U. Socioeconomic Inequalities in Breast Cancer Incidence and Mortality in Europe-a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Eur J Public Health 2016;26(5):804-813.
  5. Smith D, Thomson K, Bambra C, Todd A. The Breast Cancer Paradox: A Systematic Review of the Association Between Area-Level Deprivation and Breast Cancer Screening Uptake in Europe. Cancer Epidemiol 2019;60:77-85. 
  6. Littlejohns TJ, Travis RC, Key TJ, Allen NE. Lifestyle Factors and Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) Testing in UK Biobank: Implications for Epidemiological Research. Cancer Epidemiol 2016;45:40-46.
  7. Information Services Division Scotland. Cancer Statistics. Available from: https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Cancer/Cancer-Statistics/
  8. Welsh Cancer Intelligence Surveillance Unit: Cancer Incidence in Wales, 2001-2017. Available from: https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/
  9. Northern Ireland Cancer Registry. Cancer Information. Available from: https://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/CancerInformation/official-statistics/ 

About this data

Data is for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland 2013-2017, ICD-10 C00-C97 Excl. C44.

Last reviewed:

The European age-standardised incidence rates Open a glossary item differ significantly between UK constituent countries for several cancer types. Such differences are often due to variation in data recording (e.g. definitions of recordable tumour types), risk factor prevalence (e.g. cigarette smoking rates), or diagnostic activity (e.g. screening uptake rates). Between-country variation is discussed on the types of cancer pages.

The four most common cancers are the same in all the UK constituent countries – breast, prostate, lung, and bowel cancers.[1-4] The order of these four varies between countries. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in all the UK countries except Scotland, where lung cancer is most common.

References

  1. Data were provided by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (part of Public Health England), on request through the Office for Data Release, July 2021. Similar data can be found here: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/conditionsanddiseases/bulletins/cancerregistrationstatisticsengland/previousReleases
  2. Data were provided by ISD Scotland on request, April 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Cancer/Publications.
  3. Data were published by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/cancer-incidence-in-wales-2002-2018/, March 2021.
  4. Data were provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry on request, May 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/.

About this data

Data is for UK, 2016-2018, ICD-10 C00-C97 excl. C44.

Last reviewed:

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Acknowledgements

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