More and more people are affected by bowel cancer

LaboratoryLaboratory.Photo:Pixabay

Last year, 32,592 Norwegians were diagnosed with cancer, according to new figures from the Cancer Registry. The number of women who are diagnosed with bowel cancer, is higher than ever.

– Bowel cancer is a significant public health problem. We must take this issue seriously, says the director of the Cancer Registry, Giske Ursin.

Never before has there been more cases of bowel cancer in Norway. 1,400 men and 1,535 women were diagnosed with colorectal cancer in Norway last year.

– For women this is the highest number we’ve ever recorded, says Ursin.

Breast and prostate cancer

Colon cancer is the second most common cancer affecting Norwegian women. Breast cancer remains the most common, with 3,415 cases last year.

Among men, prostate cancer is the most common with 5061 men being diagnosed with it last year.

It is the first time the number has passed 5,000 new cases, says the Cancer Registry.
Furthermore, 1,564 men were diagnosed with lung cancer last year.

Colon cancer, with 1,400 cases, was the third most common cancer among men. Among women, lung cancer, with 1,471 cases, was the third most common.

Increasing every year

In 2015, there were around 1,000 more cancer cases registered than in 2014, when there were 31,651 new cases registered. The increase is relatively equally divided between men and women.

Every year, the number of Norwegians who have been diagnosed with cancer increases. The increase is mainly due to the population increasing in general and that the population is becoming older, not primarily an increased risk of getting cancer.

– Yet it is important not to trivialize the increase in the number of people who get cancer. Each case represents a person, a destiny and a family who are affected by the disease, says Giske Ursin.

 

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today