Vulval cancer statistics

Cases

New cases of vulval cancer, 2017-2019, UK

Deaths

Deaths from vulval cancer, 2017-2019, UK.

Survival

Survive vulval cancer for 10 or more years, 2013-2017, England

Preventable cases

Vulval cancer cases are preventable, UK, 2015

 

  • There are around 1,400 new vulval cancer cases in the UK every year, that's around 4 every day (2017-2019).
  • In females in the UK, vulval cancer is not among the 20 most common cancers, with around 1,400 new cases every year (2017-2019).
  • Vulval cancer accounts for less than 1% of all new cancer cases in females in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Vulval cancer accounts for less than 1% of all new cancer cases in females and males combined in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Incidence rates for vulval cancer in the UK are highest in females aged 90+ (2017-2019).
  • Each year more than 4 in 10 (42%) of all new vulval cancer cases in the UK are diagnosed in females aged 75 and over (2017-2019).
  • Since the early 1990s, vulval cancer incidence rates have increased by around a sixth (18%) in females in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Over the last decade, vulval cancer incidence rates have remained stable in females in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Vulval cancer incidence rates are projected to rise by 5% in the UK between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040.
  • There could be around 2,000 new cases of vulval cancer every year in the UK by 2038-2040, projections suggest.
  • Vulval cancer incidence rates in England in females are 74% higher in the most deprived quintile compared with the least (2013-2017).
  • Around 250 cases of vulval cancer each year in England are linked with deprivation.
  • An estimated 8,400 women who had previously been diagnosed with vulval cancer were alive in the UK at the end of 2010.

See more in-depth vulval cancer incidence statistics

  • There are around 470 vulval cancer deaths in the UK every year, that's more than 1 every day (2017-2019).
  • Vulval cancer is the the 20th most common cause of cancer death in females in the UK, accounting for less than 1% of all cancer deaths in females in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Vulval cancer accounts for less than 1% of all cancer deaths in females and males combined in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Mortality rates for vulval cancer in the UK are highest in females aged 90+ (2017-2019).
  • Each year more than two-thirds of all vulval cancer deaths (68%) in the UK are in females aged 75 and over (2017-2019).
  • Since the early 1970s, vulval cancer mortality rates have decreased by almost two-fifths (38%) in females in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Over the last decade, vulval cancer mortality rates have remained stable in females in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Vulval cancer mortality rates are projected to rise by 20% in the UK between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040.
  • There could be around around 870 deaths of vulval cancer every year in the UK by 2038-2040, projections suggest.
  • Vulval cancer deaths in England are more common in females living in the most deprived areas.

See more in-depth vulval cancer mortality statistics

  • Almost 6 in 10 (57.9%) women diagnosed with vulval cancer in England survive their disease for ten years or more, it is predicted (2013-2017).
  • Almost 9 in 10 (87.8%) women in England diagnosed with vulval cancer between ages 15-44 survive their disease for five years or more, compared with almost half (48.4%) of women diagnosed aged 75-99 (2016-2020).
  • Almost 8 in 10 (77.7%) women in England diagnosed with vulval cancer in the least deprived group survive their disease for five years or more, compared with two-thirds (65.7%) of women in the most deprived group (2015-2019).
  • Five-year relative survival for vaginal and vulval cancer in women is above the European average in England but similar to the European average in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Further details on cancer survival in Europe can be found on the EUROCARE website.
  • For vulval cancer, like other cancer sites, survival trends reflect a combination of changes in treatment and stage distribution. These factors themselves can vary by age, sex and deprivation.
  • Further survival statistics by stage can be found on the Early Diagnosis Data Hub and information on treatments for cancer can be found here.
  • Further one-, five- and ten-year survival statistics can be found on the Cancer Statistics Dashboard.

  • A person’s risk of developing cancer depends on many factors, including age, genetics, and exposure to risk factors (including some potentially avoidable lifestyle factors).
  • 1 in 230 UK females will be diagnosed with vulval cancer in their lifetime (born in 1961).
  • 69% of vulval cancer cases in the UK are preventable.

See more in-depth vulval cancer risk statistics 

See our new Early Diagnosis Data Hub for statistics on routes to diagnosis and screening uptake/coverage (for relevant cancer types)
 
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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the many organisations across the UK which collect, analyse, and share the data which we use, and to the patients and public who consent for their data to be used. Find out more about the sources which are essential for our statistics.