Kidney cancer incidence statistics

Cases

New cases of kidney cancer each year, 2017-2019 average, UK.

 

Proportion of all cases

Percentage kidney cancer is of total cancer cases, 2017-2019, UK

 

Age

Peak rate of kidney cancer cases, 2017-2019, UK

Trend over time

Change in kidney cancer incidence rates since the early 1990s, UK

 

Kidney cancer is the 6th most common cancer in the UK, accounting for 4% of all new cancer cases (2017-2019).[1-4]

In females in the UK, kidney cancer is the 10th most common cancer (3% of all new female cancer cases). In males in the UK, it is the 6th most common cancer (4% of all new male cancer cases).

37% of kidney cancer cases in the UK are in females, and 63% are in males.

Kidney cancer incidence rates (European age-standardised (AS) rate Open a glossary item) for persons are significantly higher than the UK average in Scotland and significantly lower than the UK average in Wales and are similar to the UK average in all other UK constituent countries.

For kidney cancer, like most cancer types, differences between countries largely reflect risk factor prevalence in years past.

Kidney Cancer (C64-C66, C68), Average Number of New Cases Per Year, Crude and European Age-Standardised (AS) Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population, UK, 2017-2019

  England Scotland Wales Northern Ireland UK
Female Cases 4,217 481 248 136 5,082
Crude Rate 14.9 17.2 15.6 14.2 15.1
AS Rate 14.9 16.5 14.3 15.2 15.0
AS Rate - 95% LCL 14.7 15.6 13.2 13.7 14.8
AS Rate - 95% UCL 15.2 17.3 15.3 16.7 15.3
Male Cases 7,330 752 418 251 8,752
Crude Rate 26.5 28.4 27.0 27.1 26.7
AS Rate 29.8 30.7 27.5 32.8 29.9
AS Rate - 95% LCL 29.4 29.5 26.0 30.5 29.5
AS Rate - 95% UCL 30.2 32.0 29.0 35.2 30.2
Persons Cases 11,548 1,234 666 387 13,834
Crude Rate 20.6 22.7 21.2 20.5 20.8
AS Rate 21.9 22.9 20.5 23.2 21.9
AS Rate - 95% LCL 21.7 22.2 19.6 21.9 21.7
AS Rate - 95% UCL 22.1 23.7 21.4 24.6 22.1

95% LCL and 95% UCL are the 95% lower and upper confidence limits around the AS Rate Open a glossary item

References

  1. England data were provided by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS), part of the National Disease Registration Service (NDRS) in NHS England, on request through the Office for Data Release, January 2023. Similar data can be found here: https://www.cancerdata.nhs.uk/ 

  2.  Northern Ireland data were provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry (NICR) on request, October 2021. Similar data can be found here:http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/. 

  3. Welsh data were published by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit (WCISU), Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/cancer-reporting-tool-official-statistics/ June 2022. 

  4. Scotland data were provided by the Scottish Cancer Registry, Public Health Scotland (PHS) on request, May 2021. Similar data can be found here: https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/show-all-releases?id=20468

About this data

Data is for UK, 2017-2019, ICD-10 C64-C66, C68.

Last reviewed:

In the UK in 2017-2019, on average each year around a third of new cases (34%) were in people aged 75 and over.[1-4]

Age-specific incidence rates rise from around 35-39, steadily for females and more steeply for males, and decrease in the oldest age groups. The highest rates are in the 85 to 89 age group for females and males.

Incidence rates are significantly lower for females than males in a number of (mainly older) age groups. The gap is widest at age 45 to 49, when the age-specific incidence rate is 2.1 times lower for females than males.

Kidney Cancer (C64-C66, C68), Average Number of New Cases per Year and Age-Specific Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population, UK, 2017-2019

For kidney cancer, like most cancer types, incidence increases with age. This largely reflects cell DNA damage accumulating over time. Damage can result from biological processes or from exposure to risk factors. A drop or plateau in incidence in the oldest age groups often indicates reduced diagnostic activity perhaps due to general ill health.

 

See also

Kidney cancer mortality statistics by age

Kidney cancer survival statistics by age

Cancer incidence statistics by age for all cancers

References

  1. England data were provided by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS), part of the National Disease Registration Service (NDRS) in NHS England, on request through the Office for Data Release, January 2023. Similar data can be found here: https://www.cancerdata.nhs.uk/ 

  2.  Northern Ireland data were provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry (NICR) on request, October 2021. Similar data can be found here:http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/. 

  3. Welsh data were published by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit (WCISU), Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/cancer-reporting-tool-official-statistics/ June 2022. 

  4. Scotland data were provided by the Scottish Cancer Registry, Public Health Scotland (PHS) on request, May 2021. Similar data can be found here: https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/show-all-releases?id=20468

About this data

Data is for UK, 2017-2019, ICD-10 C64-C66, C68.

Last reviewed:

Kidney cancer European age-standardised (AS) Open a glossary item incidence rates for females and males combined increased by 92% in the UK between 1993-1995 and 2017-2019.[1-4] The increase was of a similar size in females and males.

For females, kidney cancer AS incidence rates in the UK increased by 97% between 1993-1995 and 2017-2019. For males, kidney cancer AS incidence rates in the UK increased by 80% between 1993-1995 and 2017-2019.

Over the last decade in the UK (between 2007-2009 and 2017-2019), kidney cancer AS incidence rates for females and males combined increased by 26%. In females AS incidence rates increased by 24%, and in males rates increased by 25%.

Kidney Cancer (ICD-10 C64-C66, C68), European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates, Persons Population, 1993 to 2019

Kidney cancer incidence rates have increased overall in most broad age groups in females and males combined in the UK since the early 1990s, but have remained stable in some.[1-4] Rates in 0-24s have remained stable, in 25-49s have increased by 101%, in 50-59s have increased by 72%, in 60-69s have increased by 71%, in 70-79s have increased by 94% and in 80+s have increased by 143%.

Kidney Cancer (ICD-10 C64-C66, C68), European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates per 100,000 Persons Population, By Age, UK, 1993-2019

For kidney cancer, like most cancer types, incidence trends largely reflect changing prevalence of risk factors and improvements in diagnosis and data recording. Recent incidence trends are influenced by risk factor prevalence in years past, and trends by age group reflect risk factor exposure in birth cohorts.

References

  1. England data were provided by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS), part of the National Disease Registration Service (NDRS) in NHS England, on request through the Office for Data Release, January 2023. Similar data can be found here: https://www.cancerdata.nhs.uk/ 

  2.  Northern Ireland data were provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry (NICR) on request, October 2021. Similar data can be found here:http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/. 

  3. Welsh data were published by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit (WCISU), Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/cancer-reporting-tool-official-statistics/ June 2022. 

  4. Scotland data were provided by the Scottish Cancer Registry, Public Health Scotland (PHS) on request, May 2021. Similar data can be found here: https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/show-all-releases?id=20468

About this data

Data is for UK, 1993-2019, ICD-10 C64-C66, C68.

Last reviewed:

The most common specific location for kidney cancers in the UK is the kidney itself (2016-2018).[1-4] Variation of incidence by anatomical site may reflect the physical size of each site, and differences in risk factor exposure by site, among other factors.

Download this data

Cases and percentages may not sum due to rounding

See also

Find out more about the counting and coding of this data

References

  1. Data were provided by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (part of Public Health England), on request through the Office for Data Release, July 2021. Similar data can be found here: https://www.ons.gov.uk
  2. Data were provided by ISD Scotland on request, April 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Cancer/Publications.
  3. Data were published by the Welsh Cancer Intelligence and Surveillance Unit, Health Intelligence Division, Public Health Wales, March 2021. https://phw.nhs.wales/services-and-teams/welsh-cancer-intelligence-and-surveillance-unit-wcisu/cancer-incidence-in-wales-2002-2018/.
  4. Data were provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry on request, June 2020. Similar data can be found here: http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/nicr/

About this data

Data is for UK, 2016-2018, ICD-10 C64-C66, C68. For some cases the specific location of the cancer is not recorded, this may be due to clinical or data recording factors.

Last reviewed:

The number of new kidney cancer cases on average each year in the UK is projected to rise from around 16,300 cases in 2023-2025 to around 21,900 cases in 2038-2040.[1]

Kidney cancer incidence rates are projected to rise by 15% in the UK between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040, to 27 cases per 100,000 people on average each year by 2038-2040.[1] This includes a similar increase for males and females.

For females, kidney cancer European age-standardised (AS) Open a glossary item incidence rates in the UK are projected to rise by 12% between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040, to 18 cases per 100,000 per year by 2038-2040.[1] For males, AS rates are projected to rise by 16% between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040, to 38 cases per 100,000 per year by 2038-2040.[1]

Kidney cancer (C64-C66, C68), Observed and Projected Age-Standardised Incidence Rates, by Sex, UK, 1993-2040

Download the data table (xlsx)

See also

Find out how these projections were calculated

Incidence trends over time for kidney cancer

Projections of incidence for all cancers combined

Kidney cancer risk

Download the projections data table

References

Calculated by the Cancer Intelligence Team at Cancer Research UK, February 2023. Age-period-cohort modelling approach described here, using 2020-based population projections (Office for National Statistics) and observed cancer incidence (1975-2018 for England, Scotland and Wales, 1993-2018 for Northern Ireland).

About this data

Projections are based on incidence data from 1975-2018 (England, Scotland and Wales) and 1993-2018 (Northern Ireland); the above figure presents all UK data from 1993-2018 (observed) and 2019-2040 (projected). Number of new cases and age-standardised rates are presented as annual averages for each 3-year rolling period. ICD-10 codes C64-C66, C68.

Projections are based on observed incidence rates and therefore implicitly include changes in cancer risk factors and diagnosis. Confidence intervals are not calculated for the projected figures. Projections are by their nature uncertain because unexpected events in future could change the trend. It is not sensible to calculate a boundary of uncertainty around these already uncertain point estimates. Changes are described as 'increase' or 'decrease' if there is any difference between the point estimates.

More on projections methodology

Last reviewed:

Kidney cancer incidence rates (European age-standardised (AS) rates Open a glossary item) in England in females are 40% higher in the most deprived quintile compared with the least, and in males are 17% higher in the most deprived quintile compared with the least (2013-2017).[1]

It is estimated that there are around 1,100 more cases of kidney cancer each year in England than there would be if every deprivation quintile had the same age-specific crude incidence rates as the least deprived quintile. Around 580 of these cases are in females, and around 510 in males.

In the text above, males and females’ excess cases do not sum to persons excess cases due to rounding

Kidney Cancer (C64-C66, C68), Estimated Average Number of Excess Cases per Year and European Age-Standardised Incidence Rates per 100,000 Population, by Deprivation Quintile, England, 2013-2017

See also

Data table: Cancer incidence rates and excess cases by cancer type in England

Incidence by deprivation for all cancer types combined

Kidney cancer mortality by deprivation  (not directly comparable with incidence by deprivation)

Cancer incidence by deprivation for Scotland

Cancer incidence by deprivation for Wales

Cancer incidence by deprivation for Northern Ireland

References

  1. Calculated by the Cancer Intelligence Team at Cancer Research UK, April 2020. Based on method reported in National Cancer Intelligence Network Cancer by Deprivation in England Incidence, 1996-2010 Mortality, 1997-2011 . Using cancer incidence data 2013-2017 (Public Health England) and population data 2013-2017 (Office for National Statistics) by Indices of Multiple Deprivation 2015 income domain quintile, cancer type, sex, and five-year age band.

About this data

Data is for England, 2013-2017, ICD-10 C21.

Last reviewed:

An estimated 46,800 people who had been diagnosed with kidney cancer between 1991 and 2010 were alive in the UK at the end of 2010.[1]

See also

Kidney cancer incidence statistics by sex and UK country

What is prevalence?

References

  1. Macmillan Cancer Support and National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service. Cancer Prevalence UK Data Tables. London: NCRAS; 2015.

About this data

Data is for: Great Britain (1991-2010) and Northern Ireland (1993-2010), ICD-10 C64-C66, C68

Last reviewed:

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Cancer stats explained

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