Cancer
In the UK 270,000 cases of cancer are diagnosed each year. More than one in three people in the UK will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives. Charity Cancer Research UK estimates that by 2020 an extra 100,000 people will be diagnosed with cancer each year in the UK.
Trends in the UK
The numbers of people being diagnosed with cancer each year in the UK is increasing. The biggest risk factor for cancer is age, and as the UK has an ageing population it will experience increasing numbers of people being diagnosed with cancer. Among adults, relative survival decreases with increasing age at diagnosis for almost every cancer.
In the decade between 1993 to 2002, the overall age standardised incidence rates for cancer have remained fairly stable in men (between 406 and 415 per 100,000) and have increased slightly (3%) in women, according to the Office of National Statistics. However, the trends for individual cancers vary enormously.
The good news is that over recent decades survival rates have improved significantly for most of the common types of cancer. Cancer death rates in the UK have fallen by 11% over the last ten years.
Prevention
It is estimated that around half of all cancers - 135,000 cases a year in the UK - could be prevented through changes in lifestyle. This involves:
- Stopping smoking
- Maintaining a healthy body weight
- Eating at least five-a-day fruit and vegetables
- Regular physical activity
- Limiting alcohol intake
- Being sensible in the sun
- Acting on the early warning signs
The most common cancers
There are more than 200 types of cancer but four of them - breast, lung, large bowel (colorectal) and prostrate - account for over half of all new cases in the UK.
Ten most common cancers in women (UK incidence 2001)
Breast 30%
Colorectal (large bowel) 12%
Lung 11%
Ovary 5%
Uterus 4%
Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma 3%
Melanoma 3%
Pancreas 3%
Stomach 2%
Bladder 2%
Other 25%
Ten most common cancers in men (UK incidence 2001)
Prostate 22%
Lung 17%
Colorectal (large bowel) 14%
Bladder 6%
Stomach 4%
Head and neck 4%
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma 4%
Oesophagus 3%
Leukaemia 3%
Kidney 3%
Other 20%
Source: Cancer Research UK 2005
*Excludes non-melanoma skin cancer
Smoking and cancer
Around 90% of lung cancer cases in the UK are caused by tobacco smoking. In addition, the 2002 International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Working Group concluded that tobacco smoking can also cause cancers of the following sites: upper aerodigestive tract (oral cavity, nasal cavity, nasal sinuses, pharynx, larynx and oesophagus), pancreas, stomach, liver, lower urinary tract (renal pelvis and bladder), kidney, uterine cervix and myeloid leukaemia.
Smoking is estimated to be responsible for approximately 30% of cancer deaths in developed countries, which translates as over 46,000 deaths in 2002 in the UK.
Cancer in children
The term 'childhood cancer' means cancer diagnosed before the age of 15. Many types of cancer that occur in children are hardly ever seen in adults; conversely, the cancers most frequently seen in adults in developed countries - carcinomas of the lung, female breast, prostate and large bowel - are all extremely rare among children. Highlighting the role of lifestyle in the most common western cancers.
Useful links
Cancer Research UK
For further information visit the Cancer Research UK Information Resource Centre at www.cancerresearchuk.org/aboutcancer/statistics/
Their statistics on cancer provide in-depth analysis of the incidence, mortality and survival rates in the UK. Also see Cancer Research's '10 point code' which is part of their 'Reduce the Risk' campaign http://info.cancerresearchuk.org/healthyliving/reducetherisk/tentoptips/
Macmillian Cancer Relief
Macmillian's role is to pave the way to better care and support for everyone affected by cancer across the UK.
www.macmillan.org.uk/cancerinformation
References
1. Office for National Statistics, Cancer Statistics registrations: Registrations of cancer diagnosed in 2002, England. Series MB1 no.33. 2005, National Statistics: London.
2. International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans: Tobacco smoke and involuntary smoking. Volume83 ed. Vol. 83. 2004, Lyon: IARC Press.