Adult cancers

In the USA and other developed countries, cancer is presently responsible for about 25% of all deaths.[4] On a yearly basis, 0.5% of the population is diagnosed with cancer.

The statistics below are for adults in the United States, and will vary substantially in other countries:

Male                   ÂÂ

most common      cause of death[4] ÂÂ

prostate cancer (33%)                lung cancer (31%)             ÂÂ

lung cancer (13%)                      prostate cancer (10%)       ÂÂ

colorectal cancer (10%)             colorectal cancer (10%)     ÂÂ

bladder cancer (7%)                   pancreatic cancer (5%)      ÂÂ

cutaneous melanoma (5%)          leukemia (4%)     ÂÂ

ÂÂ

Female

most common      cause of death[4]

breast cancer (32%)                     lung cancer (27%)

lung cancer (12%)                        breast cancer (15%)

colorectal cancer (11%)                 colorectal cancer (10%)

endometrial cancer (6%)               ovarian cancer (6%)

non-Hodgkin lymphoma (4%)            pancreatic cancer (6%)

Childhood cancers

Cancer can also occur in young children and adolescents, but it is rare. Some studies have concluded that pediatric cancers, especially leukemia, are on an upward trend.[5][6]

The age of peak incidence of cancer in children occurs during the first year of life. Leukemia (usually ALL) is the most common infant malignancy (30%), followed by the central nervous system cancers and neuroblastoma. The remainder consists of Wilms’ tumor, lymphomas, rhabdomyosarcoma (arising from muscle), retinoblastoma, osteosarcoma and Ewing’s sarcoma.[4]

Female and male infants have essentially the same overall cancer incidence rates, but white infants have substantially higher cancer rates than black infants for most cancer types. Relative survival for infants is very good for neuroblastoma, Wilms’ tumor and retinoblastoma, and fairly good (80%) for leukemia, but not for most other types of cancer.