Government expects 39,000 new cancer diagnoses in 2025

4.8% increase from 2020 due to aging population and smoking amongst women

Prostate cancer surgery in Hospital del Mar, Barcelona, on October 23, 2018 (by Elisenda Rosanas)
Prostate cancer surgery in Hospital del Mar, Barcelona, on October 23, 2018 (by Elisenda Rosanas) / ACN

ACN | Barcelona

February 4, 2020 06:55 PM

The Catalan government estimates that there will be 39,000 new cancer diagnoses in Catalonia in 2025, representing a 4.8% increase compared to those expected this year.

These figures, which do not include statistics on non-melanoma skin cancer, were announced ahead of World Cancer Day on Tuesday.

The increase in expected diagnoses relates to the aging of the population and its associated illnesses as well as to smoking amongst women.

The government predicts that diagnoses of lung cancer caused by smoking for men will decrease by 4.2% while increasing 28.5% for women 5 years from now.

Overall, the health ministry believes there will be 3.4% more diagnoses for men in 2025, with the most common cancers amongst them being prostate, colorectal, lung, bladder and kidney cancers accounting for 66% of all affected patients.

The same calculations show a twice as large increase for women, with almost a third of female cancer patients diagnosed with breast cancer. Most common amongst women after this kind of illness is colorectal cancer followed by uterine cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.  

Survival rates improving

Catalonia has made great strides in terms of 5-year survival rates, improving 3% to 5% in 2010-2014 compared to 2000-2004.

Nowadays, 64% of women and 57% of men are alive 5 years after their initial cancer diagnosis.