Cancer in children

4,200 children and young adults are diagnosed with cancer in the UK each year. There are around 1,900 new cases of childhood cancer in the UK every year, spread across 76 types of children’s cancer that can be put in 12 main groups. The most common are: leukaemia (30%), brain, CNS and intracranial tumours (20%) and lymphomas (11%). There are around 2,600 new cancer cases in young people in the UK every year, that’s around 7 every day.

The types of cancer affecting children are quite different from the cancers that affect teenagers and young adults (TYA); TYA cancers are different again from the types of cancer that typically affect adults aged 25+.

Thanks to investment in research and treatment, survival has increased dramatically over the past 50 years and four out of five young cancer patients can be successfully treated.

Below you will find information about the different types of cancer which can affect children, teenagers and young adults.

Read about Childhood Cancer Statistics Read about TYA Cancers

These statistics were provided by Cancer Research UK (October 2019).

Watch our video

Professor Geoff Pilkington from the University of Portsmouth explains the types of childhood cancer and why our work is so important.

Most Common Children's Cancer Types by proportion of overall child cancer rates


How does childhood cancer affect children and young people?

Read personal journeys and first-hand experiences about different cancer types from our hero patients and their incredible families.

Read more
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