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Skin Cancer

Volume 470: debated on Thursday 24 January 2008

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department holds regional figures for five year survival rates for skin cancer. (181291)

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.

Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 24 January 2008:

As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking whether regional figures for five year survival rates for skin cancer are available. (181291)

For England, five-year survival rates are available for adult patients (aged 15-99 years) diagnosed with skin cancer during 1999-2003 and followed up to the end of 2004. These are given in Table 1 and are also available on the National Statistics website.

http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=14007&Pos=3&ColRank=1&Rank=422

Survival rates by NHS region for 58 cancers including skin cancer diagnosed during 1971-90 in England and Wales were published in Cancer Survival Trends* in 1999. Figures for skin cancer, broken down by region are given in Table 2.

Table 1: Five-year age-standardised1 relative survival (percentage) for adults (15 to 99 years) diagnosed with melanoma of the skin2 during 1999 to 2003, followed up to the end of 2004, England

Five-year relative survival

Number of patients

Percentage

95 per cent.CI3

Men

13,196

80.4

(79.2-81.7)

Women

17,005

89.4

(88.5-90.3)

1 As cancer survival varies with age at diagnosis, the relative rates for all ages (15 to 99) have been age-standardised to control for changes in the age profile of cancer patients over time, thus making them comparable with previously published figures.

2 Melanoma of the skin is classified as code C43 in the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10).

3 95 per cent. confidence intervals (CI).

Source:

Office for National Statistics

Table 2: Five-year age-standardised1 relative survival (percentage) for adults (15 to 99 years) diagnosed with melanoma of the skin2 during 1986 to 1990, followed up to the end of 1995, England and NHS region

Men

Women

England

68

82

Northern and Yorkshire

69

83

Trent

66

82

Anglia and Oxford

72

82

North Thames

66

83

South Thames

66

82

South and West

70

81

West Midlands

71

84

North and West

63

81

1 As cancer survival varies with age at diagnosis, the relative rates for all ages (15 to 99) have been age-standardised to control for changes in the age profile of cancer patients over time, thus making them comparable with previously published figures.

2 Melanoma of the skin is classified as code 172 in the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9).

Sources:

Office for National Statistics

Table 4.5: Cancer survival trends by NHS region, selected cancers, patients diagnosed 1971 to 1990: age-standardised relative survival rates (with 95 per cent. confidence intervals) at one and five years after diagnosis, and average increases in relative survival on the National Statistics website http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/xsdataset.asp?More=Y

and published in:

Coleman MP et al (1999) ‘Cancer survival Trends in England and Wales 1971 to 1995: deprivation and NHS region’. Studies in Medical and Population Subjects No.61. London: The Stationery Office.