Most Common Types of Cancer

This list of common cancer types includes cancers that are diagnosed with the greatest frequency in the United States. Cancer incidence statistics from the American Cancer Society1 and other resources were used to create the list. To qualify as a common cancer, the estimated annual incidence for 2009 had to be 35,000 cases or more.

The most common type of cancer on the list is nonmelanoma skin cancer, with more than 1,000,000 new cases expected in the United States in 2009. Nonmelanoma skin cancers represent about half of all cancers diagnosed in this country.

The cancer on the list with the lowest incidence is thyroid cancer. The estimated number of new cases of thyroid cancer for 2009 is 37,200.

Because colon and rectal cancers are often referred to as "colorectal cancers," these two cancer types are combined for the list. For 2009, the estimated number of new cases of colon cancer and rectal cancer are 106,100 and 40,870, respectively, adding to a total of 146,970 new cases of colorectal cancer.

Kidney cancers can be divided into two major groups, renal parenchyma cancers and renal pelvis cancers. Approximately 85 percent of kidney cancers develop in the renal parenchyma,2 and nearly all of these cancers are renal cell cancers. The estimated number of new cases of renal cell cancer for 2009 is 49,096.

Leukemia as a cancer type includes acute lymphoblastic (or lymphoid) leukemia, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, acute myeloid leukemia, chronic myelogenous (or myeloid) leukemia, and other forms of leukemia. It is estimated that more than 44,790 new cases of leukemia will be diagnosed in the United States in 2009, with chronic lymphocytic leukemia being the most common type (approximately 15,490 new cases).

The Difference Between Benign and Malignant Tumors

Cancer begins in cells, the building blocks that make up tissues. Tissues make up the organs of the body. Normal cells grow and divide to form new cells as the body needs them. When normal cells grow old or get damaged, they die, and new cells take their place. Sometimes, this process goes wrong. New cells form when the body doesn't need them, and old or damaged cells don't die as they should. The buildup of extra cells often forms a mass of tissue called a growth or tumor.

Tumors can be benign or malignant

Benign tumors are not cancer:

  • Benign tumors are rarely life-threatening.
  • Generally, benign tumors can be removed. They usually do not grow back.
  • Cells from benign tumors do not invade the tissues around them.
  • Cells from benign tumors do not spread to other parts of the body.

Malignant tumors are cancer:

  • Malignant tumors are generally more serious than benign tumors. They may be life-threatening.
  • Malignant tumors often can be removed. But sometimes they grow back.
  • Cells from malignant tumors can invade and damage nearby tissues and organs.
  • Cells from malignant tumors can spread (metastasize) to other parts of the body. Cancer cells spread by breaking away from the original (primary) tumor and entering the bloodstream or lymphatic system. The cells invade other organs and form new tumors that damage these organs. The spread of cancer is called metastasis.
Quick Facts

Prevalence of Cancer

A new report from the nation's leading cancer organizations shows that, for the first time since the report was first issued in 1998, both incidence and death rates for all cancers combined are decreasing for both men and women, driven largely by declines in some of the most common types of cancer.
 
Estimated new cases and deaths from cancer in the United States in 2009:
  • New cases: 1,479,350 (does not include nonmelanoma skin cancers)
  • Deaths: 562,340
Additional Information

 

 

 

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