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UK Ovarian Cancer incidence statistics

This section contains information on the incidence of ovarian cancer by age and sex, geographic variation and trends over time. The ICD codes for ovarian cancer are ICD9 183 and ICD10 C56 and C57.

In 2004 there were 6,615 cases of ovarian cancer diagnosed in the UK. Table 1.11-4 shows the numbers and rates of new cases in the UK and its constituent countries. The lifetime risk of developing ovarian cancer is approximately 1 in 48 for women in England and Wales.

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Ovarian cancer is the most common gynaecological cancer in UK women (Table 1.2).

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Ovarian cancer incidence by age

Ovarian cancer is predominantly a disease of older, post-menopausal women with almost 85% of cases being diagnosed in women over 50 years (5,568 out of 6,615 cases). There is a steep increase in incidence after the usual age of the menopause (Figure 1.1)1-4. The highest incidence rates are for women aged 65 and over.

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Geographic variation in ovarian cancer incidence

Worldwide there are more than 190,000 new cases of ovarian cancer each year, accounting for around 4% of all cancers diagnosed in women5. Incidence rates vary considerably, with the highest rates in the USA and Northern Europe and the lowest rates in Africa and Asia5.

Around 43,000 cases occur each year in Europe and 22,000 in the USA. Within the EU the lowest rates are in the Southern European countries of Greece, Portugal and Cyprus, while the highest are in the Northern and Eastern European countries of Lithuania, Denmark, Czech Republic and Estonia (Figure 1.2 shows incidence and mortality for EU countries) 5.

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Evidence from population migrant studies is conflicting. In a study of immigrants to Israel, those who migrated from a country with a higher incidence of ovarian cancer retained a similar level of risk as their country of origin, but within one generation the risks were no longer significantly different6. However, research in other migrant populations has not shown a similar pattern7-10.

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Ovarian cancer incidence trends

The incidence of ovarian cancer in British women has increased over the last 25-30 years from around 15 per 100,000 women in 1975 to around 17 per 100,000 women in 2004, an increase of more than 16% whilst the mortality rate has remained fairly stable (Figure 1.3)1,3,4.

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Figure 1.4 shows the age-specific rates for ovarian cancer between 1975 and 2004 in Great Britain. Most of the increase in incidence in Britain has been in women over 65 years. Between 1975 and 2004 the incidence rate in women over 65 years rose from 43 to 64 per 100,000, an increase of 48%. Widespread use of the contraceptive pill is one possible explanation for the stability of rates in younger women.

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References for ovarian cancer incidence

1. ISD Scotland Online. Cancer Incidence, Mortality and Survival data. 2007
2. Office for National Statistics. Cancer Statistics registrations: Registrations of cancer diagnosed in 2004, England. Series MB1 no.35. 2007
3. Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit. 2007
4. Northern Ireland Cancer Registry. Cancer Registrations in Northern Ireland, 2004. 2007
5. IARC. GLOBOCAN 2002. Cancer Incidence, Mortality and Prevalence Worldwide (2002 estimates). 2004
6. Parkin, D.M. and J. Iscovich, Risk of cancer in migrants and their descendants in Israel: II. Carcinomas and germ-cell tumours. 1997. 70(6): p. 654-660.
7. Hemminki, K. and X. Li, Cancer risks in Nordic immigrants and their offspring in Sweden. Eur J Cancer, 2002. 38(18): p. 2428-34.
8. Hemminki, K. and X. Li, Cancer risks in second-generation immigrants to Sweden. Int J Cancer, 2002. 99(2): p. 229-37.
9. Hemminki, K., X. Li, and K. Czene, Cancer risks in first-generation immigrants to Sweden. Int J Cancer, 2002. 99(2): p. 218-28.
10. Harding, S., The incidence of cancers among second-generation Irish living in England and Wales. Br J Cancer, 1998. 78(7): p. 958-61.

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