Top Ten Cancers
Key points at-a-glance
In 2022, Hong Kong recorded 35,373 new cancer cases (18,134 females and 17,239 males).
Overall, new cases decreased by 8% compared to 2021, likely due to unusual patterns in cancer
testing and diagnosis during the fifth wave of COVID-19. On average, 97 new cases were
diagnosed each day.
The five most common cancers were Lung cancer (5,707 cases), breast cancer (5,208 cases), colorectal cancer (5,190 cases), prostate cancer (2,758 cases) and liver cancer (1,612 cases), together accounting for 58% of all new cases in 2022. For the first time, breast cancer (including male breast cancer) surpassed colorectal cancer to become the second most common cancer.
After adjusting for age, the overall cancer incidence trends appear stable among men, while an increasing trend has been observed among women over the past decade. With the ageing and growing population, the number of cancer cases is expected to rise substantially in the near future.
The risk of dying from cancer has continued to decline for both genders, although the mortality rate in females has decreased less than in males. Overall, this indicates that our healthcare delivery system is still making progress against cancer.
The overall 5-year survival rate for cancer patients has steadily increased over the past two decades, rising from 42% in the early 2000s to nearly 55% in recent years. Today, about one in every 30 people in Hong Kong is living with or has survived cancer in the past 20 years. This group of survivors is likely to have ongoing healthcare needs throughout their journey.
Surveillance data emphasise the importance of early cancer detection and treatment to enhance survival. For many cancers diagnosed at an early stage, the 5-year survival rate is 90% or above. The 5-year survival rates for certain cancers diagnosed at stage I, such as female breast cancer, prostate cancer, and thyroid cancer, are nearly identical to those of the general population without cancer.
Incidence in 2022 - Both Sexes
| Rank | Site | No. | Rel. Freq. | Crude rate* |
| 1 | Lung | 5,707 | 16.1% | 77.7 |
| 2 | Breast | 5,208 | 14.7% | 70.9 |
| 3 | Colorectum | 5,190 | 14.7% | 70.6 |
| 4 | Prostate | 2,758 | 7.8% | 82.2 |
| 5 | Liver | 1,612 | 4.6% | 21.9 |
| 6 | Stomach | 1,272 | 3.6% | 17.3 |
| 7 | Corpus uteri | 1,188 | 3.4% | 29.8 |
| 8 | Non-Hodgkin lymphoma | 1,100 | 3.1% | 15.0 |
| 9 | Thyroid | 1,049 | 3.0% | 14.3 |
| 10 | Pancreas | 1,037 | 2.9% | 14.1 |
| All Sites (Include other sites not listed above) | 35,373 | 100.0% | 481.5 |
Mortality in 2022 - Both Sexes
| Rank | Site | No. | Rel. Freq. | Crude rate* |
| 1 | Lung | 3,782 | 25.7% | 51.5 |
| 2 | Colorectum | 2,270 | 15.4% | 30.9 |
| 3 | Liver | 1,412 | 9.6% | 19.2 |
| 4 | Pancreas | 920 | 6.3% | 12.5 |
| 5 | Breast | 804 | 5.5% | 10.9 |
| 6 | Stomach | 634 | 4.3% | 8.6 |
| 7 | Prostate | 519 | 3.5% | 15.5 |
| 8 | Non-Hodgkin lymphoma | 395 | 2.7% | 5.4 |
| 9 | Leukaemia | 368 | 2.5% | 5.0 |
| 10 | Oesophagus | 286 | 1.9% | 3.9 |
| All Sites (Include other sites not listed above) | 14,717 | 100.0% | 200.3 |
Reference
Major cancers in Hong Kong in 2022
