Incidence
Lung cancer, which includes tumours of the bronchus, trachea and lung, is the second most common cancer diagnosed in British Columbia and also in Canada, for both men and women (National Cancer Institute of Canada, 1998). It accounts for about 17% and 13% of all cancer diagnoses in BC for males and females respectively. Among women, the incidence rate of lung cancer is stabilising after a period of rapid increase, while in men, the rate peaked in the mid-1980s and has since consistently declined as indicated on the figure below.
Overall, lung cancer causes about 29% of all cancer deaths in British Columbia. This death toll is greater than that attributed to colorectal, breast, and prostate cancer (the second through fourth leading causes of cancer mortality) combined.
In 1997, the last year for which data are complete, there were 1329 new cases of lung cancer diagnosed in men, and 1145 lung cancer deaths recorded. Among women there were 1014 new cases diagnosed, and 817 deaths recorded. About 85% of the new cases were non-small cell cancers; the remainder was small cell carcinomas. Approximately 60% of the diagnosis were among males and 40% among females, but this ratio is rapidly changing as the incidence among women is growing.
Age
Three quarters of diagnosed lung cancer patients were 62 years old and older, and half were 69 years and over at diagnosis. The mean age at diagnosis was 68 years. The youngest person diagnosed in BC during the last ten years was 17 years old, the oldest 104. Age distribution is presented on the histogram below:
Survival
A large proportion of incident lung cancer cases are fatal, therefore, lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer mortality for both men and women. The 5-year survival remains poor at about 11% for men and 14% for women, with little evidence of improvement over time (National Cancer Institute of Canada, 1995). The plot indicates that the vast majority of patients diagnosed with Lung Cancer died from this cancer; few died from other cancers or non-cancer causes. Median Lung Cancer specific survival about 8.5 months. Median overall survival for these patients is 7 months.
Estimated Probability of Surviving up to 1, 3, 5 and 7 Years after Diagnosis with Lung Cancer
|
Estimated Probability
of Surviving
|
Years After Diagnosis
|
|
1 year
|
3 years
|
5 years
|
7 years
|
| Lung Cancer (only) |
40%
|
19%
|
15%
|
13%
|
| Overall Survival (all causes) |
35%
|
14%
|
10%
|
7%
|