3.1 Summary

Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) was the most common cancer in Ireland, accounting for 27% of all malignant neoplasms (Table 3.1). The average number of new cases diagnosed each year was 3,777 in women and 4,294 in men. During 1995-2007, the number of new cases increased by approximately 3% per annum; since 2002 it has been increasing by around 6% in RoI.

The risk of developing NMSC before the age of 75 was 1 in 12 for women and 1 in 8 for men and was slightly higher in RoI than in NI for both men and women. At the end of 2008, 11,629 women and 12,375 men aged under 65, and 30,748 women and 31,937 men aged 65 and over, were alive up to 15 years after their cancer diagnosis.

Table 3.1 Summary information for non-melanoma skin cancer in Ireland, 1995-2007

 

Ireland

RoI

NI

 

females

males

females

males

females

males

% of all new cancer cases

27%

28%

28%

29%

24%

27%

average number of new cases per year

3777

4294

2666

3080

1111

1215

cumulative risk to age 74

8.6%

12.2%

9.3%

12.9%

7.1%

10.5%

15-year prevalence (1994-2008)

42377

44312

29736

31028

12641

13284

The incidence of NMSC increased with increasing age (Figure 3.1). The age distribution was similar for men and women and for RoI and NI. Only approximately 10% of cases occurred in those aged under 50 years and the largest number of cases for both sexes presented in the 70–79 age group.

Figure 3.1 Age distribution of non-melanoma skin cancer cases in Ireland, 1995-2007, by sex

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