Prostate cancer statistics - Key Facts

• Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK. 
• Around a quarter of all new cases of cancer diagnosed in men are prostate cancers.
• In 2008 in the UK around 37,000 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer, that's around 100 every day. 
• Over the last 30 years prostate cancer rates in Great Britain have almost tripled, although much of the increase is due to increased detection through widespread use of the PSA test.
• More than half of prostate cancer cases are diagnosed in men aged over 70 years.
• In 2008, around 324,000 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer in Europe (EU-27).
• Worldwide, around 899,000 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2008. More than two out of three cases are diagnosed in the more developed regions.

Read more in depth prostate cancer incidence statistics.

section updated 13/01/12

• In the 1970s less than a third of men diagnosed with prostate cancer survived their disease beyond five years, now it’s more than three-quarters; however, much of this increase can be attributed to the increased use of PSA testing in the UK which has led to the diagnosis of many prostate cancers which would have gone undetected.
• In the 1970s only two out of ten men diagnosed with prostate cancer survived their disease for at least ten years, now it is nearly seven in ten; however, much of this increase can be attributed to the increased use of PSA testing in the UK which has led to the diagnosis of many prostate cancers which would have gone undetected.

Read more in depth prostate cancer survival statistics.

section updated 14/12/11

• Prostate cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death in UK men, after lung cancer.
• In 2009 in the UK about 10,400 men died from prostate cancer, that's around 200 every week.
• More than 8 in 10 prostate cancer deaths occur in men aged 70 and over.
• Prostate cancer death rates peaked in the early 1990s and have since fallen by around a fifth..
• It is estimated that more than 70,000 men in Europe (EU-27) died from prostate cancer in 2008.
• Worldwide an estimated 258,000 men died from prostate cancer in 2008.

Read more in depth prostate cancer mortality statistics.

section updated 13/01/12

• The strongest risk factor for prostate cancer is age, with very low risk in men under the age of 50, but risk increasing with age thereafter.
• Men with one or more first-degree relatives (father, brother, or son) diagnosed with prostate cancer have an increased risk of prostate cancer, especially if the relative was diagnosed before the age of 60.
• West African men and black men from the Caribbean have a higher risk of prostate cancer than white men.
• Men born in Asia have a lower risk of prostate cancer than men born in the UK.

Read more in depth prostate cancer risk factors.

*age-standardised to the European standard population

section updated 13/01/12

More detailed prostate cancer statistics can be found using these links: incidence, survival, mortality, risk factors, molecular biology and genetics, symptoms and treatment, screening.