Flanders sees rise in new diagnoses of prostate and breast cancer
Almost 8,000 new cases of prostate cancer, the most common cancer in men, were diagnosed in Flanders in 2021. The most common cancer in women, breast cancer, saw almost 7,000 new cases for women and 62 for men. Statistics Flanders announced the figures on Thursday.
The number of new breast cancer cases has increased slightly since 2013 to 6,860, along with an annual growth in prostate cancer cases to 7,794 in 2021. This increase is linked to the ageing of the population, but it is also possible that the 2021 numbers are being recorded after the Covid-19 pandemic when there were fewer consultations and screenings.
Statistics Flanders predicts there will be 237 new cases of prostate cancer per 100,000 men and 204 new breast cancer cases per 100,000 women in the region in 2021.
The number of new cases of prostate cancer per 100,000 men increased sharply in 2021 in the 50-54 age group. This number was highest in the 75-79 age group, with 1,220 new cases per 100,000 men. The risk decreases in later life. In the age groups between 65 and 84, the number of new breast cancer cases was around 450 per 100,000 women.
Regionally, Flanders has the highest number of new diagnoses of both breast and prostate cancer, followed by Wallonia and then Brussels.
#FlandersNewsService | © PHOTO ANNE-CHRISTINE POUJOULAT / AFP
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