Prostate cancer incidence and survival has increased in UK – study

Posed by models. Credit: Getty/Svitlana Hulko

By Olivia Bowthorpe

Prostate cancer cases have risen in the UK largely due to an ageing population and increased PSA testing, researchers say.

A new cohort study found that the period prevalence of prostate cancer rose 3.5-fold from 2000 to 2021, and increased with age.¹

In 2000, the incidence rate was 109 per 100,000 person-years, rising to 159 per 100,000 person-years in 2021.

However, a decline was seen from 2020, said Daniel Prieto Alhambra, professor of pharmaco- and device epidemiology at the University of Oxford, and colleagues.

In JAMA Network Open, they reported that median survival was 11 years, adding: "Survival increased over time: 1 year survival was 94.8% in those diagnosed between 2015 to 2019, compared with 90.8% from 2000 to 2004."

The analysis of 198,125 patients showed that 5-year survival improved from 65.3% from 2000 to 2004, to 75.3% in 2015 to 2019.

The researchers stated: "These findings suggest that increasing incidence, prevalence, and survival of patients with prostate cancer reflect a high burden in the management of cancer survivorship in an ageing population.