Testicular cancer statistics

Cases

New cases of testicular cancer, 2017-2019, UK

Deaths

Deaths from testicular cancer, 2017-2019, UK.

 

Survival

Survive testicular cancer for 10 or more years, 2013-2017, England

Prevention

Preventable cases of testicular cancer are not known as it is not clearly linked to any preventable risk factors

  • There are around 2,400 new testicular cancer cases in the UK every year, that's more than 6 every day (2017-2019).
  • In males in the UK, testicular cancer is the 17th most common cancer, with around 2,400 new cases every year (2017-2019).
  • Testicular cancer accounts for 1% of all new cancer cases in males in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Testicular cancer accounts for less than 1% of all new cancer cases in females and males combined in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Incidence rates for testicular cancer in the UK are highest in males aged 30 to 34 (2017-2019).
  • Each year less than a twentieth (1%) of all new testicular cancer cases in the UK are diagnosed in males aged 75 and over (2017-2019).
  • Since the early 1990s, testicular cancer incidence rates have increased by more than a quarter (27%) in males in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Over the last decade, testicular cancer incidence rates have increased by around a twentieth (6%) in males in the UK (2017-2019).
  • See our new Early Diagnosis Data Hub for statistics on stage at diagnosis for testicular cancer.
  • The most common specific location for testicular cancers in the UK is descended testes (2016-2018).
  • Testicular cancer incidence rates are projected to fall by 6% in the UK between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040.
  • Testicular cancer incidence rates in males in England are 16% lower in the most deprived quintile compared with the least (2013-2017).
  • Around 190 cases of testicular cancer each year in England are linked with deprivation.
  • Incidence rates for testicular cancer are lower in the Asian ethnic group, compared with the White ethnic group, in males in England (2013-2017). See our publication Cancer Incidence by Broad Ethnic Group for more details.
  • An estimated 34,900 men who had previously been diagnosed with testicular cancer were alive in the UK at the end of 2010.

See more in-depth testicular cancer incidence statistics

  • There are around 65 testicular cancer deaths in the UK every year, that's more than 1 every week (2017-2019).
  • Testicular cancer is the not among the 20 most common causes of cancer death in males in the UK, accounting for less than 1% of all cancer deaths in males in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Testicular cancer accounts for less than 1% of all cancer deaths in females and males combined in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Mortality rates for testicular cancer in the UK are highest in males aged 90+ (2017-2019).
  • Each year almost 3 in 20 of all testicular cancer deaths (13%) in the UK are in males aged 75 and over (2017-2019).
  • Since the early 1970s, testicular cancer mortality rates have decreased by more than four-fifths (82%) in males in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Over the last decade, testicular cancer mortality rates have remained stable in males in the UK (2017-2019).
  • Testicular cancer mortality rates are projected to fall by 14% in the UK between 2023-2025 and 2038-2040.
  • There could be around around 55 deaths of testicular cancer every year in the UK by 2038-2040, projections suggest.
  • Testicular cancer deaths in England are more common in males living in the most deprived areas.

See more in-depth testicular cancer mortality statistics

  • Around 9 in 10 (91.3%) men diagnosed with testicular cancer in England survive their disease for ten years or more, it is predicted (2013-2017).
  • More than 9 in 10 (97%) men in England diagnosed with testicular cancer aged 15-44 or 45-54 survive their disease for ten years or more, compared with almost three-quarters (73.0%) of men diagnosed aged 65-99 (2013-2017).
  • Testicular cancer survival has increased in the last 50 years in the UK, probably because of combination chemotherapy.
  • In the 1970s, around 7 in 10 (69.2%) men diagnosed with testicular cancer survived their disease beyond ten years, by the 2010s it was almost all (98.2%).
  • More than 9 in 10 men in England diagnosed with testicular cancer for five years or more; the proportions are similar in the least deprived group (96.8%) compared with the most deprived group (96.5%).
  • Five-year relative survival for testicular cancer in men is above the European average in England but similar to the European average in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Further details on cancer survival in Europe can be found on the EUROCARE website.
  • For testicular cancer, like other cancer sites, survival trends reflect a combination of changes in treatment and stage distribution. These factors themselves can vary by age, sex and deprivation.
  • Further survival statistics by stage can be found on the Early Diagnosis Data Hub and information on treatments for cancer can be found here.
  • Further one-, five- and ten-year survival statistics can be found on the Cancer Statistics Dashboard.
Find further information on our testicular cancer survival trends page

  • A person’s risk of developing cancer depends on many factors, including age, genetics, and exposure to risk factors (including some potentially avoidable lifestyle factors).
  • 1 in 220 UK males will be diagnosed with testicular cancer in their lifetime (born in 1961).
  • Testicular cancer is not clearly linked to any preventable risk factors.
  • No modifiable factors have been conclusively linked with testicular cancer risk, though many factors have been studied. The most well-established risk factor for testicular cancer is cryptorchidism.

See more in-depth testicular cancer risk statistics

See the interactive cancer treatment online tool produced by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS) in partnership with Cancer Research UK (CRUK). This presents, for the first time, population-based statistics on chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgical tumour resections in England, by demographic factors and geography.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the many organisations across the UK which collect, analyse, and share the data which we use, and to the patients and public who consent for their data to be used. Find out more about the sources which are essential for our statistics.