Key Statistics for Childhood Cancers
How common is cancer in children?
About 9,910 children in the United States under the age of 15 will be diagnosed with cancer in 2023. Childhood cancer rates had been rising slightly for the past few decades, but have stabilized since 2010.
Survival rates for children with cancer
Because of major treatment advances in recent decades, 85% of children with cancer now survive 5 years or more. Overall, this is a huge increase since the mid-1970s, when the 5-year survival rate was about 58%. Still, survival rates can vary a great deal depending on the type of cancer and other factors. The survival rates for a specific type of childhood cancer can be found in our information for that cancer type.
Mortality in children with cancer
After accidents, cancer is the second leading cause of death in children ages 1 to 14. About 1,040 children under the age of 15 are expected to die from cancer in 2023.
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- References
The American Cancer Society medical and editorial content team
Our team is made up of doctors and oncology certified nurses with deep knowledge of cancer care as well as journalists, editors, and translators with extensive experience in medical writing.
American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts & Figures 2023. American Cancer Society. Atlanta, Ga. 2023.
American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts & Figures 2020. Special Section: Cancer in Adolescents and Young Adults. American Cancer Society. Atlanta, Ga. 2020.
Last Revised: January 12, 2023
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