More people are getting cancer but fewer of them are dying from it, according to a UK analysis of the last 25 years.
Better prevention, including falling numbers of people smoking, screening programmes, earlier detection and diagnosis and improved treatment have all likely contributed to a substantial fall in death rates, researchers concluded in the BMJ.
Overall, there was a modest rise in the number of cancers diagnosed in men and women aged 35-to-69 years over the study period of 1993 to 2018.
The total number of cancer cases rose by 57% for men and by 48% for women which when looked at by age equated to an average annual increase by 0.8% in both sexes, largely driven by increases in prostate and breast cancers, the researchers reported in the BMJ.
Yet the overall number of cancer deaths fell by 20% in men and 17% in women over the same period.
When the ageing and growing population was taken into account, this became a 37% drop in cancer deaths in men and a 33% drop for women.
But death rates had fallen when looked at all cancers combined or for 17 out of 22 cancer types looked at.
The largest declines were seen in stomach cancer, mesothelioma, and bladder cancers as well as cervical cancers and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Of 22 cancer types looked at only liver, oral, and uterine cancers showed an increase in annual deaths of 1% or more, the analysis showed.
Despite the fairly optimistic findings, the researchers did identify concerning increases in cases in men and women for liver, melanoma skin, oral, and kidney cancers.
Increased levels of alcohol intake and excess body weight are likely factors in the rise in rates of some less common cancers, they noted.
The data will provide a benchmark for the coming decade in which the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on cancer incidence and outcomes will also need to be assessed, they concluded.
‘This study helps us to see the progress we’ve made in beating cancer and where challenges clearly remain,’ said Jon Shelton, head of cancer intelligence at Cancer Research and lead.
‘With cancer cases and mortality for some sites on the rise and improvements in survival slowing, it’s vital that the UK Government takes bold action to keep momentum up,’ he added.
Steve Russell, the director of vaccination and screening at NHS England, said: ‘The NHS is determined to build on these improvements, so we are working hard to achieve our ambitions of seeing 55,000 more people each year surviving their cancer for five years or longer by 2028 and three-quarters of people with cancer being diagnosed at an early stage by 2028.’
The findings are grounds for optimism, Dr Freddie Bray from the International Agency for Research on Cancer noted in a linked editorial.
But there are some early warning signs that should raise alarm bells, including the possibility of excess cancer deaths in future years resulting from delays in diagnosis and treatment during the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as rising death rates from common cancers, including among younger age groups.
‘Effective interventions that increase awareness of modifiable risk factors for cancer—including, but not limited to excess body weight and harmful alcohol consumption—must be urgently prioritised,’ he said.
