Rise in early onset cancer ‘not confined to colorectal cancer’

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By Ella Pickover, PA Media

A rise in people getting cancer before the age of 50 is not just confined to colorectal cancer, the World Cancer Research Fund has said.

The charity said that there have been increases in rates of prostate, kidney, uterine, liver, pancreas and breast cancers among adults under 50.

While most cancers are still diagnosed in older adults, the charity said that the trajectory is “concerning”.

It analysed NHS data in England and compared the rates of diagnoses among people in 2001 and 2023.

Increases found by the charity include:

• There were 158 cases of prostate cancer diagnosed among men under the age of 50 in 2001, equating to one case per every 100,000 men under 50, this rose to 640 cases in 2023, the equivalent of 3.6 cases per 100,000.
• Bowel cancer cases among younger adults increased from 1,289 in 2001 to 2,989 in 2023, this represents a rise from 3.9 cases per 100,000 adults under 50 in 2001 rising to 8.4 per 100,000 in 2023.