B.C. cancer cases to increase 57 per cent by 2030: report

WATCH: A new study says B.C. is heading for a crisis in cancer care as the population ages.

A new report by the BC Cancer Agency predicts the annual number of cancer cases in the province will increase 57 per cent between now and 2030.

“What we did find was that the main driver of that increase was population aging and population growth to some extent as well,” said co-author Ryan Woods. “So the people most at risk of getting cancer are the people older than 60, older than 70.”

The number of British Columbians over the age of 70 is expected to increase from one in nine to one in six by 2030.

The Cancer Agency did the report to get an idea of what to prepare for.

“Cancer requires so many different parts of the healthcare system to care for it, to diagnose it. So part of this report is to illustrate that we’re going to have a big demand coming,” said Woods.

That means more screening and treatment facilities and skilled specialists.

But Woods says there are many things individuals can do to reduce cancer risk, meaning the prediction of a 57 per cent increase in cancer cases over the next 15 years is not necessarily written in stone.

“We can do things like get screened for cancer to detect it early,” said Woods. “And also, a message for individuals is to do whatever they can to lower their cancer risk. We know that there are modifiable risk factors for cancer–things like smoking, things like exposure to the sun, a healthy body weight.”

-with files from Linda Aylesworth