Children and young people with cancer in Scotland

About this release

This release by Public Health Scotland (PHS) provides information on cancer in children (ages 0 to14) and young people (ages 15 to 24) in Scotland, using age-appropriate cancer classifications.

Main points

• Children:
  • In the ten-year period 2012 to 2021, 1,344 children (52% male) were diagnosed with cancer in Scotland. Nearly one third (31%) of those cancers were leukaemia and just over a quarter (26%) were cancers of the brain and central nervous system (CNS).
  • In the decade leading to 2021, there were increases in renal tumours and decreases in neuroblastomas and other peripheral nervous cell tumours in boys; and increases in neuroblastomas and decreases in retinoblastomas in girls.
  • Most children will be cured of their cancer, 85% of children diagnosed with cancer can expect to be alive at least five years after the diagnosis. While survival rates are high from most cancers, 1 in 15 children (6.6%) die in the first year after a cancer diagnosis. There were no significant changes in 1 or 5-year survival between 2011 to2015 and 2016 to 2020.
• Young people:
  • In the ten-year period 2012 to 2021, 1,919 young people (49% male) were diagnosed with cancer in Scotland. The most common diagnoses were carcinomas (22%), lymphomas (19%), and CNS tumours (14%).
  • Cancers in 15 to 24 year old females fell overall by 12% in the decade leading to 2021 with carcinomas and CNS tumours in particular falling significantly. However, there was a large (285%) increase in leukaemias.
  • Most young people will be cured of their cancer, 91% of young people diagnosed with cancer can expect to be alive at least five years after the diagnosis. While survival rates are high from most cancers, 1 in 30 young people (3.4%) die in the first year after a cancer diagnosis. There were no significant changes in 1 or 5-year survival in either children or young people between 2011 to 2015 and 2016 to 2020.
  • Together, there have been 9,670 people who were diagnosed with a cancer in the last 45 years when they were either a child or a young person. These numbers of cancer survivors have major resource implication for medics, nurses, and Allied Health Professionals who provide long term follow-up and they have impacts upon other departments such as radiology, fertility and cardiology.

Background

The occurrence and outcomes of cancer in children and young people (CYP) in Scotland deserves particular attention. Our existing publications on cancer incidence include CYP using a classification of cancer types based on anatomical site, which is more suited to cancers diagnosed in adults. Many adult cancers are caused by modifiable lifestyle factors or are associated with increasing age. The determinants of cancers in CYP are very different. As children and young people usually live many decades after a diagnosis of cancer, the implications for their future health, including fertility, are different to those of adults diagnosed in later life.

Improving the wellbeing of children and young people after cancer treatment, and into their adulthood, has increasing major resource implications, not only on paediatric and adult cancer services, but also other fields, such as radiology, fertility and cardiology for long term follow-up.

This publication has been developed in collaboration with the Managed Service Network for Children and Young People with Cancer. Information is included on cancer incidence, survival, mortality, place of death and prevalence covering the years 2012-2021.

Further information

The next release of this publication will be May 2024.