Prostate cancer statistics

Cases

New cases of prostate cancer each year, 2016-2018 average, UK

Deaths

Deaths from prostate cancer, 2017-2019, UK.

 

Survival

Survive prostate cancer for 10 or more years, 2013-2017, England and Wales

Prevention

Preventable cases of prostate cancer are not known as it is not clearly linked to any preventable risk factors

  • There are around 52,300 new prostate cancer cases in the UK every year, that's more than 140 every day (2016-2018).
  • In males in the UK, prostate cancer is the most common cancer, with around 52,300 new cases every year (2016-2018).
  • Prostate cancer accounts for 27% of all new cancer cases in males in the UK (2016-2018).
  • Prostate cancer accounts for 14% of all new cancer cases in females and males combined in the UK (2016-2018).
  • Incidence rates for prostate cancer in the UK are highest in males aged 75 to 79 (2016-2018).
  • Each year around a third (34%) of all new prostate cancer cases in the UK are diagnosed in males aged 75 and over (2016-2018).
  • Since the early 1990s, prostate cancer incidence rates have increased by almost half (48%) in males in the UK (2016-2018).
  • Over the last decade, prostate cancer incidence rates have increased by almost a tenth (8%) in males in the UK (2016-2018).
  • See our new Early Diagnosis Data Hub for statistics on stage at diagnosis for prostate cancer.
  • Prostate cancer incidence rates are projected to rise by 15% in the UK between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040.
  • There could be around 85,100 new cases of prostate cancer every year in the UK by 2038-2040, projections suggest.
  • Prostate cancer incidence rates in males in England are 17% lower in the most deprived quintile compared with the least (2013-2017).
  • Around 3,100 cases of prostate cancer each year in England are linked with lower deprivation.
  • Incidence rates for prostate cancer are lower in the Asian ethnic group and in people of mixed or multiple ethnicity, but higher in the Black ethnic group, compared with the White ethnic group, in males in England (2013-2017). See our publication Cancer Incidence by Broad Ethnic Group for more details.
  • An estimated 280,500 men who had previously been diagnosed with prostate cancer were alive in the UK at the end of 2010.

See more in-depth prostate cancer incidence statistics

  • There are around 12,000 prostate cancer deaths in the UK every year, that's 33 every day (2017-2019).
  • Prostate cancer is the the 2nd most common cause of cancer death in males in the UK, accounting for 14% of all cancer deaths in males in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Prostate cancer accounts for 7% of all cancer deaths in females and males combined in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Mortality rates for prostate cancer in the UK are highest in males aged 90+ (2017-2019).
  • Each year three-quarters of all prostate cancer deaths (75%) in the UK are in males aged 75 and over (2017-2019).
  • Since the early 1970s, prostate cancer mortality rates have increased by almost a sixth (16%) in males in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Over the last decade, prostate cancer mortality rates have decreased by a tenth (10%) in males in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Mortality rates for prostate cancer are generally lower or similar in males of non-White minority ethnicity, compared with the White ethnic group, in England and Wales (2017-2019). See the publication Mortality from leading causes of death by ethnic group, England and Wales.
  • Prostate cancer mortality rates are projected to fall by 5% in the UK between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040.
  • There could be around around 17,500 deaths of prostate cancer every year in the UK by 2038-2040, projections suggest.
  • Prostate cancer deaths in England are not associated with deprivation.

See more in-depth prostate cancer mortality statistics

  • More than 9 in 10 (96.6%) of men diagnosed with prostate cancer in England survive their disease for one year or more (2013-2017).
  • Almost 9 in 10 (86.6%) of men diagnosed with prostate cancer in England survive their disease for five years or more (2013-2017).
  • It is predicted that almost 8 in 10 (77.6%) of men diagnosed with prostate cancer in England survive their disease for ten years or more (2013-2017).
  • Prostate cancer survival in England is higher for men diagnosed aged 60-69 years old, probably because of PSA testing detecting latent, earlier, slow-growing cancers (2009-2013).
  • Almost 95% of men in England diagnosed with prostate cancer aged 50-59 or 60-69 survive their disease for five years or more, compared with two thirds of men diagnosed aged 80 and over (2009-2013).
  • Prostate cancer survival is improving and has tripled in the last 40 years in the UK, probably because of PSA testing.
  • In the 1970s, a quarter of men diagnosed with prostate cancer survived their disease beyond ten years, now it's more than 8 in 10.
  • When diagnosed at its earliest stage, all (100%) people with prostate cancer will survive their disease for one year or more, compared with almost 9 in 10 (88%) people when the disease is diagnosed at the latest stage.
  • When diagnosed at its earliest stage, all (100%) people with prostate cancer will survive their disease for five years or more, compared with around 1 in 2 (49%) people when the disease is diagnosed at the latest stage.
  • Five-year relative survival for prostate cancer in men is below the European average in England, Wales and Scotland but similar to the European average in Northern Ireland.

See more in-depth prostate cancer survival statistics

  • A person’s risk of developing cancer depends on many factors, including age, genetics, and exposure to risk factors (including some potentially avoidable lifestyle factors).
  • 1 in 6 UK males will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime.
  • Prostate cancer is not clearly linked to any preventable risk factors.
  • No modifiable factors have been conclusively linked with prostate cancer risk, though many factors have been studied. Use of PSA testing often makes interpretation of evidence difficult.

See more in-depth prostate cancer risk statistics

  • ‘Two-week wait’ standards are met by all countries, ‘31-day wait’ and ‘62 day wait’ are not met by any country for urological cancers.
  • 15% of patients diagnosed with prostate cancer have surgery to remove the tumour as part of their primary cancer treatment.
  • 30% of patients diagnosed with prostate cancer have radiotherapy as part of their primary cancer treatment
  • 3% of patients diagnosed with prostate cancer have chemotherapy as part of their primary cancer treatment.
See more in-depth prostate cancer treatment statistics

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the many organisations across the UK which collect, analyse, and share the data which we use, and to the patients and public who consent for their data to be used. Find out more about the sources which are essential for our statistics.