Cancer statistics

Data extracted in April 2023.

Planned article update: June 2024.

Highlights

In 2020, Luxembourg recorded the lowest standardised death rate for cancer among EU Member States, 203.1 per 100 000 inhabitants.

In 2020, among the EU Member States, the highest standardised death rates for cancer were recorded in Hungary and Croatia, each with rates of at least 300 per 100 000 inhabitants.

In-patient average length of stay for neoplasms, 2020

This article presents an overview of statistics related to cancer in the European Union (EU) and focuses on three aspects: deaths from cancer, cancer healthcare and the availability of specialist day care and equipment for the treatment of cancer. Some of the statistics presented in this article are only available for the broader category of neoplasms, which includes benign and uncertain neoplasms as well as malignant ones (cancer). An accompanying article, Cancer statistics — specific cancers, looks in more detail at statistics for a selection of specific cancers: colorectal cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer and prostate cancer.

This article is one of a set of statistical articles concerning health status in the EU which forms part of an online publication on health statistics. This article is about the year 2020's data, most of which is being presented for the first time; this article includes data impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and its related restrictions. For this reason, particular attention should be paid when comparing data with previous years.

Full article

Deaths from cancer

In 2020, cancer was the second leading cause of death in the EU, with 1.2 million deaths, which equated to 23.0 % of the total number of deaths in the EU — see Table 1. Cancer accounted for a higher share (24.9 %) of deaths among men than among women (20.0 %).

Table 1: Deaths caused by malignant neoplasms, residents, 2020
Source: Eurostat (hlth_cd_aro) and (hlth_cd_asdr2)

Among the EU Member States, the share of deaths from cancer in the total number of deaths in 2020 reached or exceeded 27.0 % in Ireland, Denmark and Slovenia (Iceland and Norway also had shares of over 27.0 %). Among men, this share peaked at 31.1 % in Slovenia and 30.2 % in Ireland, while among women it peaked at 28.5 % in Ireland and 27.7 % in Denmark. By contrast, less than 15 % of all deaths in Romania and Bulgaria were caused by cancer.

For the EU, the standardised death rate for cancer was 242.2 per 100 000 inhabitants in 2020, lower than the rate for circulatory diseases, but higher than the rate for most other causes of death, including COVID-19 (at a similar level of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD)). An analysis by gender and by age shows large differences in standardised death rates for cancer: for men the rate (318.3 per 100 000 male inhabitants) was 69 % higher than that for women (188.1 per 100 000 female inhabitants), while the rate for persons aged 65 years and over was 14 times as high as it was for younger persons (those aged less than 65 years).

Among the EU Member States, the highest standardised death rates for cancer were recorded in Hungary, Croatia and Slovakia, each with rates of at least 300 per 100 000 inhabitants in 2020. Luxembourg recorded the lowest standardised death rate for cancer among the Member States, 203.1 per 100 000 inhabitants. Luxembourg also recorded the lowest standardised death rates among men: 247.8 per 100 000 male inhabitants; and Spain had the lowest standardised death rate among women: 150.5 per 100 000 female inhabitants. For men, the highest standardised death rates for cancer were reported in Latvia, Hungary and Lithuania, all with rates above 430 per 100 000 male inhabitants. For women, the highest standardised death rates for cancer were recorded in Hungary and Denmark, both with rates over 230 per 100 000 female inhabitants.

Cancer healthcare

Three sets of data are available for cancer healthcare. These concern the number of discharges of in-patients, the average length of stay for in-patients, and the type of operations and procedures performed.

Concerning the provision of care, this article concentrates on in-patient care and day care. Both in-patient care and day care comprise a formal admission into a healthcare facility such as a hospital for diagnosis, treatment or other types of healthcare. While in-patient care involves an overnight stay after admission, day care comprises planned medical and paramedical services delivered to patients without an overnight stay: day care patients are formally admitted with the intention of being discharged on the same day. The inclusion of accommodation with medical and ancillary care constitutes the main distinction between in-patient and outpatient care.

In 2019, there were around 6.6 million in-patients who were discharged from hospitals having been treated for neoplasms in the EU (2018 data for Germany, Malta and Finland; 2016 data for Denmark and Luxembourg; no recent data for Greece) .

Austria recorded the highest discharge rate for in-patients with neoplasms

From Figure 1 it can be seen that, for all neoplasms, the highest discharge rate for in-patients was in Austria, where 2 525 in-patients per 100 000 inhabitants were discharged in 2020 after diagnosis or treatment for neoplasms. In Germany and Bulgaria this rate also exceeded 2 000 per 100 000 inhabitants. Elsewhere the rate ranged from 819 per 100 000 inhabitants in Sweden to 1 871 per 100 000 inhabitants in Estonia, with Portugal, Cyprus (2019 data), Ireland and Malta (2019 data) below this range.

Figure 1: Hospital discharge rates for in-patients with neoplasms, 2020
(per 100 000 inhabitants)
Source: Eurostat (hlth_co_disch2)

Neoplasms: falling average length of stay for in-patients

The average length of stay for in-patients having been classified for the purpose of their treatment or investigation under neoplasms ranged among the EU Member States in 2020 from 4.6 days in Bulgaria to 13.4 days in Malta (no recent data for Denmark, Greece or Luxembourg). A comparison of the data for 2020 with that for 2015 (see Figure 2 for the precise availability) shows an overall downward pattern in the average length of stays for in-patients. Increases were recorded only for Malta, Ireland and Austria. The largest reduction in terms of the average number of days was recorded in Croatia (1.5 days fewer in 2020 than in 2015).

Figure 2: In-patient average length of stay for neoplasms, 2015 and 2020
(days)
Source: Eurostat (hlth_co_inpst)

Table 2 presents data for the frequency (relative to population size) with which two procedures were carried out to prevent or treat breast cancer: the removal of part (partial excision of mammary gland) or all (total mastectomy) of a mammary gland — codes 85.20-85.23, 85.33-85.36 and 85.4. In 2020, almost 327 000 operations were performed in the 24 EU Member States with data available (2019 data for Cyprus, Malta and the Netherlands, no data for Czechia, Greece, and Slovakia) to remove part of a mammary gland. A further 140 000 total mastectomies were performed in 25 Member States (similar coverage, but also including data for Slovakia).

Table 2: Surgical operations and procedures performed related to cancer, 2015 and 2020
(per 100 000 inhabitants)
Source: Eurostat (hlth_co_proc2)

In 2020, partial mastectomies were most commonly performed in Belgium, with 122.8 of these procedures per 100 000 inhabitants, while the next highest rates in Finland and France with 114.4 and 97.5 procedures per 100 000 inhabitants. Romania, Poland and Cyprus (2019 data) recorded the lowest frequencies for this procedure, each with less than 20 partial mastectomies per 100 000 inhabitants in 2020. Total mastectomies were also most common in Belgium, with 59.2 per 100 000 inhabitants. Finland, the Netherlands (2019 data), Denmark, and Spain also recorded 40 or more total mastectomies per 100 000 inhabitants in 2020.

Majority of Member States recorded an increase in the frequency (relative to population) in procedures related to breast cancer

For partial mastectomies, more than half of the EU Member States for which data are available reported a decrease in the frequency of this operation between 2015 and 2020: the largest decrease was reported by Romania (down 48 %) and Finland (up 42 %). There was an increase in 5 of the Member States for which there are data between 2015 and 2020 (2019 data for Cyprus, Malta and the Netherlands): the largest increase was recorded in Cyprus (up 27 %). For total mastectomies, the largest decrease was in Croatia (down 39 %), while the largest increase was in Spain (up 32 %).

Cancer related healthcare and equipment

Oncological day care involves treatments that do not require an overnight stay, for example day case chemotherapy, blood and platelet transfusions, tests, removal of sutures (stitches), injections and dressings. Although only a limited amount of data are available (see Table 3 for data availability), the range in availability of day care places in 2020 was large, from 0.2 places per 100 000 inhabitants in Slovakia to 18.9 places per 100 000 inhabitants in Belgium and 20.7 places per 100 000 inhabitants in Spain.

Table 3: Cancer related day care places and equipment, 2015 and 2020
(per 100 000 inhabitants)
Source: Eurostat (hlth_rs_tech) and (hlth_rs_equip)

Radiation therapy equipment covers machines used for treatment with x-rays or radionuclides. These include linear accelerators, Cobalt-60 units, Caesium-137 therapy units, low to orthovoltage x-ray units, high dose and low dose rate brachytherapy units, and conventional brachytherapy units: note that some of these machines may also be used for treatments other than for cancer. In 2020, there were 2 818 radiation therapy units in the EU Member States for which data are available (2018 data for Latvia; no data for Belgium, the Netherlands and Hungary; note that data for Germany, France, Portugal and Sweden refer only to equipment in hospitals), with the largest numbers in France (762), Italy (445) and Germany (394). Relative to population size, radiation therapy equipment was most common in Denmark (1.3 per 100 000 inhabitants), while it was least common in Romania (0.3 per 100 000 inhabitants).

Source data for tables and graphs

Cancer statistics: tables and figures

Data sources

Key concepts

An in-patient or day care patient is discharged from hospital when formally released after a procedure or course of treatment (episode of care). A discharge may occur because of the finalisation of treatment, signing out against medical advice, transfer to another healthcare institution, or because of death.

The number of deaths from a particular cause of death can be expressed relative to the size of the population. A standardised (rather than crude) death rate can be compiled which is independent of the age and sex structure of a population: this is done as most causes of death vary significantly by age and according to sex and the standardisation facilitates comparisons of rates over time and between countries.

Causes of death

Statistics on causes of death provide information on mortality patterns, supplying information on developments over time in the underlying causes of death. This source is documented in more detail in the background article Causes of death statistics — methodology which provides information on the scope of the data, its legal basis, the methodology employed, as well as related concepts and definitions.

Causes of death are classified according to the European shortlist (86 causes), which is based on the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD). Chapter II of the ICD covers neoplasms:

C00-C97 Malignant neoplasms;
D00-D09 In situ neoplasms;
D10-D36 Benign neoplasms;
D37-D48 Neoplasms of uncertain or unknown behaviour.

Please refer to national reference metadata for more information.

Healthcare resources and activities

For hospital discharges and the length of stay in hospitals, the International Shortlist for Hospital Morbidity Tabulation (ISHMT) is used to classify data from 2000 onwards; Chapter II covers neoplasms:

Malignant neoplasm of colon, rectum and anus (0201);
Malignant neoplasms of trachea, bronchus and lung (0202);
Malignant neoplasms of skin (0203);
Malignant neoplasm of breast (0204);
Malignant neoplasm of uterus (0205);
Malignant neoplasm of ovary (0206);
Malignant neoplasm of prostate (0207);
Malignant neoplasm of bladder (0208);
Other malignant neoplasms (0209);
Carcinoma in situ (0210);
Benign neoplasm of colon, rectum and anus (0211);
Leiomyoma of uterus (0212);
Other benign neoplasms and neoplasms of uncertain or unknown behaviour (0213).

Please refer to this background information document for country specific notes on this data collection.

Statistics on healthcare resources (such as personnel and medical equipment) and healthcare activities (such as information on surgical operations and procedures and hospital discharges) are documented in the background article Healthcare non-expenditure statistics — methodology which provides information on the scope of the data, its legal basis, the methodology employed, as well as related concepts and definitions.

For surgical operations and procedures the International Classification of Diseases — clinical modification (ICD-9-CM) is used:

Partial excision of a mammary gland (85.20-85.23);
Total mastectomy (85.33-85.36 and 85.4).

Please refer to this background information document for country specific notes on this data collection.

Symbols

Note on tables:

a colon ‘:’ is used to show where data are not available;
a dash ‘–‘ is used to show where data are not applicable/relevant.

Context

Although significant advances have been made in the fight against this group of diseases, cancer remains a key public health concern and a tremendous burden on EU societies — it is the second largest cause of death in the EU.

Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, presented in February 2021, is the EU’s response to growing challenges and developments in cancer control and represents a political commitment to leave no stone unturned in the fight against cancer. Built around ten flagship initiatives, and several supporting actions, it forms part of the Commission’s proposals for a strong European Health Union with a view to ensuring a more secure, better-prepared and more resilient EU.

Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan supports Member States’ work to prevent cancer and to ensure a high quality of life for cancer patients, survivors, their families and carers and is structured around a number of key areas where the EU can add most value:

prevention
early detection
diagnosis and treatment
quality of life of cancer patients and survivors.