Cervical cancer - UK incidence statistics

In 2008, 2,938 women were diagnosed with cervical cancer in the UK. It is the twelfth most common cancer in women, accounting for around 2% of all female cancers (Table 1.1). 1-4

It has been estimated that the lifetime risk of being diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2008 is 1 in 134 for women in the UK. This was done using the AMP method. 5

Table 1.1: Cervical Cancer (C53), Number of New Cases, Crude and European Age-Standardised (AS) Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population, UK, 2008

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Figure 1.1 shows the age-specific cases and rates for cervical cancer in the UK. Cervical cancer is the most common cancer in females aged under 35, with more than 700 cases being diagnosed in the UK each year. There are two peaks in the age-specific incidence rates: the first is in women aged 30-34 (at 19 per 100,000 women), and the second is in women aged 75 and over (at 13 per 100,000 women). Both peaks can be explained by looking at the disease pattern by period of birth rather than period of diagnosis or death - this is known as a birth 'cohort' effect and is explained more fully in the Mortality section.6, 7

Figure 1.1: Cervical Cancer (C53), Average Number of New Cases per Year and Age-Specific Incidence Rates, UK, 2006-2008

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section updated 02/02/12

It has been estimated that around two thirds of cervical cancers are  squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and around 15% are adenocarcinoma (with nearly all of the remainder of cases being registered as poorly specified).8, 9, 16 An analysis of cervical cancer incidence in Sweden has shown that an early age peak at 35-39 years is apparent for both SCC and adenocarcinoma.10

A study by the International Agency for Research on Cancer has reported an increase in adenocarcinoma and a downward trend in SCC in many countries worldwide. 11, 12

section updated 02/02/12

Following the introduction of the NHS cervical screening programme in the UK in the late 1980s,cervical cancer incidence rates decreased considerably until reaching a plateau in the early 2000s (shown for Great Britain in Figure 1.2).1-4, 13 This is because cervical screening detects and treats abnormal cells, and so can help prevent many cases of cervical cancer from developing. Between 1986-1988 and 2006-2008 in Great Britain, the age-standardised incidence rate almost halved (from 16 to 8.5 per 100,000 women, respectively).

Figure 1.2: Cervical Cancer (C53), European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates, Great Britain, 1975-2008

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As UK wide data is only available after cervical screening was introduced, the age-standardised incidence rate for the UK from 1993 onwards shows a similar downward trend but from the mid 2000's this appears to be stabilising. (Figure 1.3).

Figure 1.3: Cervical Cancer (C53), European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates, UK, 1993-2008

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section updated 02/02/12

An estimated 530,000 women across the world were diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2008, accounting for nearly one in ten (9%) of all cancers diagnosed in women.11  The developing countries carry the biggest burden of cervical cancer, with more than eight out of ten (86%) cases being diagnosed there in 2008. There is a seven-fold variation in the incidence of cervical cancer between the different regions of the world, with rates ranging from 5 per 100,000 in Western Asia to 35 per 100,000 in Eastern Africa in 2008 (Figure 1.4)

Figure 1.4: Cervical Cancer (C53), World Age-Standardised Incidence and Mortality Rates, World Regions, 2008 Estimates

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Much of the variation in incidence can be attributed to geographical differences in population prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV - a precursor to cervical cancer development), and other co-factors that modify risk in HPV-infected women such as oral contraceptive use and smoking (see Risk Factors section). Screening programmes have substantially reduced incidence and mortality rates in Western countries, whereas HPV vaccination offers a promising option for lowering disease burden in the developing world.12, 14

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Prevalence data relates to the proportion of the UK population alive on a specific date having previously been diagnosed with cancer. The latest analysis shows that on 31st December 2006, around 19,000 women were alive ten years after being diagnosed with cervical cancer. Table 1.2 shows the one, five and ten year prevalence for cervical cancer.15

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section updated 02/02/12