Economics of cancer for policy

Cancer is the defining health issue of our time. Beyond the enormous emotional and physical toll for patients and families, cancer has also important economic implications. With cancer cases growing and budgets tightening, there is a pressing need to prioritise resources and transform cancer outcomes through investment in prevention, early detection and research. 

The economic impact of cancer

Our work sheds light on the wider economic and societal impact of cancer beyond the human cost of pain and suffering. These include healthcare costs, other non-medical costs like travel costs, informal care borne by people affected by cancer and their families and costs related to reduced paid and unpaid work. The latter, usually referred to as productivity losses, can be the results of a cancer diagnosis or premature mortality.

The economic loss of cancer mortality

The UK economy loses around £10.3 billion each year in lost productivity due to premature mortality from cancer, more than any other disease.

Cancer is the leading cause of economic loss due to mortality, not only because it’s the biggest cause of death in the UK but also because it affects people of all ages.

Learn more about our Economic Losses due to Cancer Mortality analysis(PDF, 1.17 MB)

Cost of Cancer in the UK

The evidence on the wide-ranging economic impact of cancer is summarised in a report developed with the University of Leeds. This also identifies important evidence gaps – including how costs vary by age, socio-economic status, ethnicity and cancer stage, as well as the financial impact experienced by people affected by cancer.

Find out more in our Cost of Cancer report

Visit our Cancer News site to read more about the cost of cancer and its impact on the economy:

Health is wealth: tackling cancer to grow the economy (June 2025)

The cost of cancer: what does it mean for the UK economy? (November 2024)