Statistics

Back to feature: Cancer Awareness Month

Cancer Statistics

Cancer is the leading cause of death in Canada, accounting for 30% of all deaths.
2 in 5 Canadians will develop cancer in their lifetime.^{Footnote 1}
1 in 4 Canadians will die from cancer.^{Footnote 1}
Each hour in Canada in 2016, an estimated 23 people were diagnosed with cancer. This is more than 500 per day.^{Footnote 1}
Cancer costs the Canadian healthcare system an estimated $4.4 billion every year in direct and indirect costs, making it the 7th most costly illness or injury in Canada.^{Footnote 1}
60% of those diagnosed with cancer will live at least 5 years.^{Footnote 1}

In 2016, 102,900 Canadian men and 99,500 Canadian women were diagnosed with cancer.^{Footnote 1}
Canadian females are more likely to develop breast cancer than any other type of cancer with 1 in 9 being diagnosed with it in their lifetime.^{Footnote 1}
Canadian males are more likely to develop prostate cancer than any other type of cancer with 1 in 8 being diagnosed with it in their lifetime.^{Footnote 1}

In 2015-2016, CIHR invested $156 million into cancer research, which was approximately 16% of CIHR total grants and awards investments.
CIHR has funded more than $68 million into cancer immunotherapy research, including more than $7 million in 2015-2016.
Immunotherapy can be used to treat many forms of cancer. A few examples could include:
- Bladder cancer is the 5th most common cancer in Canada and accounts for 4% of all cancer cases.^{Footnote 1} Bladder cancer was one of the first cancers that immunotherapy was used to treat, and immunotherapy is currently making great advances in treating early-stage bladder cancer!^{Footnote 2}
- Almost 1,000,000 people worldwide are diagnosed with stomach cancer each year. Immunotherapy has great potential for treating advanced stomach cancers by using monoclonal antibodies.^{Footnote 3}
- Melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, is showing great promise for treatment in current immunotherapy clinical trials!^{Footnote 4}