Prostate cancer overtakes breast cancer as most common in England

Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Prostate cancer was the most commonly diagnosed cancer in England in 2018, marking the first time breast cancer has been overtaken, according to the latest cancer registration statistics released Monday by Public Health England.

In 2018, 316,680 newly diagnosed cases of all cancers were reported, including 49,029 cases prostate cancer, followed by 47,476 cases of breast cancer. The next most commonly diagnosed were lung and bowel cancers.

There were 7,828 more diagnoses of prostate cancer in 2018 than the previous year, the figures show.

Public Health England said the number increased mainly because of the "Fry and Turnbull effect," referring to British actor, comedian and writer Stephen Fry and journalist and former BBC Breakfast presenter Bill Turnbull, who both went public in early 2018 with prostate cancer diagnoses, encouraging more people to get tested.

The report was provisional, Public Health England said, and a full release will be published in the spring.