By the numbers: cancer in Manitoba

WINNIPEG – Manitoba has the slowest growth rate for cancer cases in Canada, but the disease is expected to kill 2,800 Manitobans this year as an average of 18 people are diagnosed daily in the province.

The Canadian Cancer Society on Wednesday released its first annual report to include long-term predictions of the burden cancer will create in the country. It also released predictions for the toll the disease will take in each province, including Manitoba.

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The report predicts that by 2032, there will be 8,255 cancer diagnoses each year in Manitoba, with more than half of those being prostate, breast, lung or colorectal cancer.

That’s an increase from an estimated 6,700 cancer diagnoses this year in Manitoba. The most common of those is predicted to be colorectal cancer, with 970 diagnoses, lung cancer at 890 diagnoses, breast cancer at 860 and prostate cancer with 740 cases – all increases over last year. The predicted 2,800 deaths are the equivalent of eight Manitobans a day.

“We need to accelerate our research efforts and we need to engage more people in taking action to reduce their cancer risk,” Erin Crawford, senior director of community engagement for the Canadian Cancer Society in Manitoba, said in a news release. “For example, if 80 per cent of the target-aged Canadians were screened for colorectal cancer starting today, we could potentially save 40,000 lives over the next 15 years.”

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Dr. Salah Mahmud, the Manitoba Medical Officer of Health and a University of Manitoba epidemiologist whose work is funded by the cancer society, said the report is an important tool in the fight against cancer.

“It’s critical that we know what is coming so we can prepare,” he said in the news release. “This report provides the scope of the problem over the next 15 years and will help in the planning of cancer control programs for prevention, screening, early detection, treatment, as well as medical and palliative care.”

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The report provides a wealth of information about cancer in Manitoba, including the following facts:

• An estimated 6,700 people in Manitoba will be diagnosed with cancer in Manitoba this year, an increase from 6,500 in 2014. That’s an average of 18 people per day.
• An estimated 2,800 people in Manitoba will die from cancer this year, an increase from 2,700 in 2014.
• An estimated 860 people in Manitoba will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year, an increase from 850 in 2014, and 200 women will die of the disease, up from 190 last year. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in Manitoba and across Canada.
• An estimated 740 men in Manitoba will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year, up from 730 last year, and an estimated 180 men will die of prostate cancer, the same number as in 2014. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in Manitoba and across Canada.
• An estimated  890 Manitobans will be diagnosed with lung cancer this year, up from 880 last year, and 710 Manitobans will die of the disease, up from 680 last year. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in both men and women in Manitoba and across Canada.
• An estimated 970 Manitobans will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer this year, up from 930 last year, and 340 people in Manitoba will die of the disease, the same number as last year.
• The most common cancers in Manitoba, in order, are colorectal, lung, breast and prostate cancer.
• The Canadian Cancer Society has more than 6,000 volunteers in Manitoba and more than 140,000 in Canada.