9th November 2011 November 9, 2011
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Cancer cases projected to rise 45% in next two decades
The number of new cancer cases in the UK could rise by 45% by 2030 to more than 430,000 a year, research suggests.
The rise is explained almost entirely by the expected increase in the number of people living in the UK and the ageing population.
Cancer Research UK, which funded the study published in the British Journal of Cancer, says the NHS must act now to avoid being “overwhelmed”.
The Department of Health said it was already responding to the challenge.
The research presents projections for 23 different types of cancer. The results are based on taking figures from cancer registries going back to 1975, and then projected forwards to 2030, taking into account expected changes in population.
The study suggests that the number of new cases could rise from about 298,000 in 2007 to 432,000 by 2030 – an increase of 45%. The increase in men is forecast to be 55%, and 35% in women.
Light ‘promising’ in cancer fight
Light is a “promising” tool in the fight against cancer, say researchers in the US.
A study, published in Nature Medicine, showed how a drug could be created which sticks to tumours, but is then only activated when hit by specific waves of light.
It means a treatment can be highly targeted and not damage the surrounding tissue.
A cancer charity said the treatment showed early promise.
Currently, treatments for cancer can be separated into three categories: blasting it with radiation, surgically removing a tumour or using drugs to kill the cancerous cells. All have side effects and scientists are trying to come up with more precise therapies.
In this study, researchers at the National Cancer Institute, Maryland, used an antibody which targets proteins on the surface of cancerous cells.
They then attached a chemical, IR700, to the antibody. IR700 is activated when it is hit by near infrared light. This wavelength of light can penetrate several centimetres into the skin.
To test the antibody-chemical combination, researchers implanted tumours, squamous cell carcinoma, into the backs of mice. They were given the drug and exposed to near infrared light.
2011 thoracic surgical blue book
This audit found that the number of lung cancer patients benefiting from life-saving surgery has risen by 60 percent while the operative mortality rate has halved in recent years as a new generation of specialist lung surgeons start to come through into the NHS. In the last year alone the number of lung cancer operations has increased by more than 17 per cent.
