What is happening over time

A look at the rates of new cancers and cancer deaths over time in Aotearoa.

Because our population is growing, the actual number of new cancers per year has increased considerably over the past 25 years, but the rate of new cancers has remained stable and the rate of cancer deaths has reduced substantially for most of the cancers.

Technical note

Figures showing changes over time were taken from the Manatū Hauora - Ministry of Health’s Historical summary of cancer registrations and deaths.

Rate data are age-standardised to the World Health Organisation (WHO) world standard population.

For more information on these charts (generated by Te Aho o Te Kahu) please contact info@teaho.govt.nz.

What is happening over time with specific cancers?

Female breast cancer rate

The most common cancer to affect women in Aotearoa is breast cancer (with around 3,500 new cases a year). Rates of breast cancer have increased slightly over the past 20 years for both wāhine Māori and non-Māori women.

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Prostate Cancer

At around 4,000 new cases a year, prostate cancer remains the most common cancer to affect men in Aotearoa.

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Colorectal Cancer

While the incidence of colorectal cancer has reduced over time for non-Māori, the opposite has occurred for Māori, and Māori and non-Māori now experience similar rates of this cancer. The reasons for these trends are not well understood.

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Lung Cancer

Both Māori and non-Māori have experienced a gradual reduction in the incidence of lung cancer since 1995 (driven largely by reduced exposure to tobacco), but Māori rates remain substantially higher than non-Māori rates.

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