Thyroid Cancer Statistics

When it comes to thyroid cancer, statistics can help provide a better understanding of the disease and its impact. The American Cancer Society estimated that 30,180 Americans would be diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2006. Other thyroid cancer statistics indicate that the overall five-year relative survival rate for the disease during 1995-2001 was 96.6 percent. The following article contains various statistics concerning thyroid cancer.

 

Thyroid Cancer Statistics: 2006 Estimates

The American Cancer Society estimated that 30,180 Americans (7,590 men and 22,590 women) would be diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2006 and that 1,500 men and women would die of the disease during the year.
 

Thyroid Cancer Statistics: Age at Diagnosis

During 1998-2002, the median age at diagnosis for thyroid cancer was 46 years of age. The percentages of people diagnosed with thyroid cancer based on age were as follows:
 
  • 2.3 percent were diagnosed under age 20
  • 20.2 percent were diagnosed between 20 and 34
  • 23.3 percent were diagnosed between 35 and 44
  • 22.1 percent were diagnosed between 45 and 54
  • 14.6 percent were diagnosed between 55 and 64
  • 10.0 percent were diagnosed between 65 and 74
  • 6.0 percent were diagnosed between 75 and 84
  • 1.4 percent were diagnosed at 85 years of age or older.
 

Thyroid Cancer Statistics: Mortality

From 1998-2002, the median age at death for thyroid cancer was 74 years of age. The approximate percentages of people who died from thyroid cancer based on age were as follows:
 
  • 0.2 percent died under age 20
  • 1.0 percent died between 20 and 34
  • 3.0 percent died between 35 and 44
  • 8.1 percent died between 45 and 54
  • 16.0 percent died between 55 and 64
  • 24.5 percent died between 65 and 74
  • 31.5 percent died between 75 and 84
  • 15.7 percent died at 85 years of age or older.
 
The age-adjusted thyroid cancer death rate was 0.5 per 100,000 men and women per year. These rates are based on patients who died in 1998-2002 in the United States. Thyroid cancer death rates by race and sex were:
 
Race/Ethnicity
Men
Women
All Races
0.4 per 100,000 men
0.5 per 100,000 women
Caucasian
0.5 per 100,000 men
0.5 per 100,000 women
African American
0.4 per 100,000 men
0.5 per 100,000 women
Asian/Pacific Islander
0.4 per 100,000 men
0.7 per 100,000 women
Hispanic
0.5 per 100,000 men
0.7 per 100,000 women
 
(Thyroid Cancer Statistics Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Arthur Schoenstadt, MD