Cancer incidence and mortality in Poland in 2020

Abstract

Introduction. Morbidity due to malignant neoplasms has been growing steadily during the last three decades, and cancer has become the second most widespread cause of death. The aim of this article is to present a summary of the epidemiological indicators of malignant neoplasms in Poland in 2020.  Material and methods. In the following report, we present the latest estimates of morbidity and mortality from cancer in Poland in 2020–2022 and a wide range of information on the occurrence of registered cancer cases and deaths in 2020, according to sex, age, cancer site, or Polish administrative division. Cancer data was collected by the National Cancer Registry and the Central Statistical Office.  Results. The PNCR received information about 146,181 new cases and 99,871 thousand cancer deaths in 2020. Compared to the previous year, the number of cancer cases decreased by about 12,000 in both sexes.  Conclusions. An important phenomenon that appeared in 2020 was the COVID-19 pandemic. It more than likely significantly influenced cancer cases under-registration.