Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) incidence statistics

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Cases

New cases of acute myeloid leukaemia each year, 2016-2018 average, UK.

 

Proportion of all cases

Percentage acute myeloid leukaemia is of total cancer cases, 2016-2018, UK

 

Age

Peak rate of acute myeloid leukaemia cases, 2016-2018, UK

 

Trend over time

Change in acute myeloid leukaemia incidence rates since the early 1990s, UK

 

Acute myeloid leukaemia accounted for less than 1% of all new cancer cases in the UK in 2016-2018.[1-4]

In females in the UK, acute myeloid leukaemia accounted for less than 1% of all new female cancer cases. In males in the UK, it accounted for less than 1% of all new male cancer cases).

44% of acute myeloid leukaemia cases in the UK are in females, and 56% are in males.

Acute myeloid leukaemia incidence rates (European age-standardised (AS) rate Open a glossary item) for persons are significantly lower than the UK average in Scotland and Northern Ireland, and similar to the UK average in all other UK constituent countries.

For acute myeloid leukaemia, there are few established risk factors therefore differences between countries largely reflect differences in diagnosis and data recording.

Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C92.6, C92.8, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2), Average Number of New Cases Per Year, Crude and European Age-Standardised (AS) Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population, UK, 2016-2018

  England Scotland Wales Northern Ireland UK
Female Cases 1,151 101 64 32 1,347
Crude Rate 4.1 3.6 4.0 3.3 4.0
AS Rate 4.1 3.5 3.7 3.5 4.0
AS Rate - 95% LCL 3.9 3.1 3.2 2.8 3.9
AS Rate - 95% UCL 4.2 3.9 4.2 4.2 4.1
Male Cases 1,492 113 100 36 1,742
Crude Rate 5.4 4.3 6.5 3.9 5.3
AS Rate 6.2 4.8 6.8 5.1 6.1
AS Rate - 95% LCL 6.1 4.3 6.0 4.1 5.9
AS Rate - 95% UCL 6.4 5.3 7.6 6.0 6.3
Persons Cases 2,643 214 164 68 3,089
Crude Rate 4.8 3.9 5.2 3.6 4.7
AS Rate 5.0 4.1 5.1 4.1 4.9
AS Rate - 95% LCL 4.9 3.7 4.6 3.6 4.8
AS Rate - 95% UCL 5.2 4.4 5.5 4.7 5.0

95% LCL and 95% UCL are the 95% lower and upper confidence limits around the AS Rate Open a glossary item
 

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 C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C92.6, C92.8, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2.

Last reviewed:

Acute myeloid leukaemia incidence is strongly related to age, with the highest incidence rates being in older people. In the UK in 2016-2018, on average each year more than 4 in 10 new cases (42%) were in people aged 75 and over.[1-4]

Age-specific incidence rates rise gradually from birth, rise steadily from around age 50-54 , rise more steeply from age 60-64 and drop in the oldest age groups. The highest rates are in in the 90+ age group for females and the 85 to 89 age group for males.

Incidence rates are significantly lower in females than males in a number of (mainly older) age groups. The gap is widest at age 85 to 89, when the age-specific incidence rate is 2 times lower in females than males.

Acute myeloid leukaemia (C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C92.6, C92.8, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2), Average Number of New Cases per Year and Age-Specific Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population, UK, 2016-2018

For acute myeloid leukaemia, like most cancer types, incidence increases with age. This largely reflects cell DNA damage accumulating over time. Damage can result from biological processes or from exposure to risk factors. A drop or plateau in incidence in the oldest age groups often indicates reduced diagnostic activity perhaps due to general ill health.

See also

Acute myeloid leukaemia mortality statistics by age

View Leukaemia (all subtypes combined) incidence statistics

Cancer incidence statistics by age for all cancers

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 C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C92.6, C92.8, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2.

Last reviewed:

Acute myeloid leukaemia European age-standardised (AS) Open a glossary item incidence rates for females and males combined increased by 20% in the UK between 1993-1995 and 2016-2018.[1-4] The increase was of a similar size in females and males.

For females, acute myeloid leukaemia AS incidence rates in the UK increased by 16% between 1993-1995 and 2016-2018. For males, acute myeloid leukaemia AS incidence rates in the UK increased by 19% between 1993-1995 and 2016-2018.

Over the last decade in the UK (between 2006-2008 and 2016-2018), acute myeloid leukaemia AS incidence rates for females and males combined remained stable. In females AS incidence rates remained stable, and in males rates remained stable.

Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C92.6, C92.8, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2), European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates, UK, 1993 to 2018

Acute myeloid leukaemia incidence rates have remained stable overall in some broad age groups in females and males combined in the UK since the early 1990s, but have increased in others.[1-4] Rates in 0-24s have remained stable, in 25-49s have remained stable, in 50-59s have remained stable, in 60-69s have remained stable, in 70-79s have increased by 27% and in 80+s have increased by 60%.

Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C92.6, C92.8, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2), European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates per 100,000 Persons Population, By Age, UK, 1993-2018

For acute myeloid leukaemia there are few established risk factors, therefore increasing incidence in the 1980s and 1990s may largely reflect improvements in diagnosis and data recording.

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, 1993-2018, ICD-10 C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C92.6, C92.8, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2.

Last reviewed:

Acute myeloid leukaemia incidence rates (European age-standardised (AS) rates Open a glossary item) in England in females are similar in the most deprived quintile compared with the least, and in males are 11% higher in the most deprived quintile compared with the least (2013-2017).[1]

It is estimated that there are around 70 more cases of acute myeloid leukaemia each year in males in England than there would be if every deprivation quintile had the same age-specific crude incidence rates as the least deprived quintile.

Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C92.6, C92.8, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2), Estimated Average Number of Excess Cases per Year and European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population, by Deprivation Quintile, England, 2013-2017

No data are shown for females as the difference in age-standardised incidence rates between most and least deprived quintiles is not significant for females.

See also

Data table: Cancer incidence rates and excess cases by cancer type in England

Incidence by deprivation for all cancer types combined

Acute myeloid leukaemia mortality by deprivation  (not directly comparable with incidence by deprivation)

Cancer incidence by deprivation for Scotland

Cancer incidence by deprivation for Wales

Cancer incidence by deprivation for Northern Ireland

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.

About this data

Data is for England, 2013-2017, ICD-10 C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C92.6, C92.8, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2.

Last reviewed:

An estimated 6,100 people who had been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) between 1991 and 2010 were alive in the UK at the end of 2010.[1]

See also

Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) cancer incidence statistics by sex and UK country

What is prevalence?

References

  1. Macmillan Cancer Support and National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service. Cancer Prevalence UK Data Tables. London: NCRAS; 2015.

About this data

Data is for: Great Britain (1991-2010) and Northern Ireland (1993-2010), ICD-10 C92.0, C92.4, C92.5, C93.0, C94.0, C94.2.

Last reviewed:

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