About 70,000 people ages 15 to 39 are diagnosed with cancer each year, accounting for about five percent of all cancer diagnoses. While cancer is not as common in adolescents and young adults as in older adults, it’s more common than childhood cancer (cancer in children younger than 15 years).
Over the past 30 years, the number of patients with cancer in the adolescent and young adult age group has increased more than any other group. The growing number of AYA patients has led to more specialized care and research for these cancers.
The most common types of cancer found in adolescents and young adults include:
- Brain and spinal cord tumors
- Breast cancer
- Cervical cancer
- Colorectal cancer
- Ewing family of tumors
- Sarcomas
- Bone
- Soft tissue
- Uterine
- Germ cell tumors
- Leukemia
- Liver cancer
- Lymphoma
- Melanoma
- Osteosarcoma
- Ovarian cancer
- Rhabdomyosarcoma
- Testicular cancer
- Thyroid cancer