Skin Cancer Cancer Facts & Figures in Brief
The Facts About Skin Cancer
The American Cancer Society (ACS) publishes Cancer Facts & Figures each year. This report gives detailed analyses of how many people in the US develop and die from cancer. It includes the latest information on risk factors, early detection, treatment, and current research for the most common types of cancer. Here are some of the key skin cancer facts for 2021:
Basal Cell and Squamous Cancers
- Basal cell and squamous cell cancers are the most commonly diagnosed skin cancers in the US. They’re also called nonmelanoma skin cancer. It’s not unusual for a person to have more than one of these cancers on their skin at the same time. In fact, the most recent study estimated that in 2012 over 5 million cases of these cancers were diagnosed in more than 3 million people.
- Almost all cases of basal and squamous cell cancers skin cancer can be cured, especially if they are found and treated early.
- Melanoma accounts for only about 1% of skin cancers but causes a large majority of skin cancer deaths.
- About 106,110 Americans are expected to be diagnosed with melanoma in 2021. About 7,180 are expected to die from it.
- While anyone can get melanoma, it’s most often diagnosed in non-Hispanic White people. Hispanic and Black people also get melanoma, but at much lower rates.
- Before age 50, more women are diagnosed with melanoma than men. After 50, the rates rise increasingly in men.
Preventing and Treating Melanoma
- A recent study by ACS researchers showed that most cases of and deaths from melanoma are linked with ultraviolet (UV) radiation and potentially preventable. Protecting the skin from long periods in the sun and avoiding indoor tanning can reduce the risk of this potentially deadly form of skin cancer.
- The risk of melanoma is about 60% higher for people who begin using indoor tanning before the age of 35.
- The 5-year relative survival rate for all stages combined of melanoma of the skin is 93%. When melanoma is found before it has spread, the 5-year relative survival rate is 99%. Currently, 83% of diagnoses are at an early stage.
- Melanoma skin cancer had the steepest declines in cancer death rate for all ages from 2013 to 2017 due to advances in treatment, including the approval of the immunotherapy drug Yervoy (ipilimumab) and the targeted therapy drug Zelboraf (vemurafenib).
Find more statistics about melanoma on the Cancer Statistics Center:
- Estimated new cases and deaths by sex and by state
- Graphics showing historical trends in incidence rates (1975-2017) and death rates (1930-2018) by sex
- Recent incidence rates (2013-2017) and death rates (2014-2018) by sex, by race and ethnicity, and by state
- Probability of developing cancer (2015-2017) and dying from cancer (2015-2017)
- 5-year survival rates (2010-2016) by stage at diagnosis
Use the analysis tool in the drop-down menu to see any of these statistics in comparison to other types of cancer.
Spotlight on ACS Research Publications
The American Cancer Society (ACS) employs a staff of full-time researchers and funds scientists across the United States who relentlessly search for answers to help us better understand cancer, including skin cancer. Here are some highlights of their work.
Learning How a Virus Causes a Rare, Aggressive Skin Cancer May Help Lead to New Treatments
“As a dermatologist, I see patients with viral skin infections, like warts, all the time, but these warts almost never result in dangerous cancers. By studying why some viral infections will develop into cancers, while others do not, I hope to identify pathways in immune cells that can be targeted to treat these cancers and give a better understanding of cancer development in general.”—Richard Wang, MD, PhD
See the highlight about Dr. Wang's published study.
Potential New Drug for Melanoma Destroys, Rather than Inhibits, Cancer-Causing Proteins
"To develop a new drug to treat melanoma, we’re investigating “the use of a new technology developed in my lab that approaches drug development in a different way. Instead of the traditional pharmaceutical paradigm that focuses on blocking the function of a disease-causing protein, our new approach focuses on enlisting the cell's own quality-control machinery to eliminate the rogue protein. By hijacking the cellular processes that normally remove proteins, we can simply make disease-causing proteins 'go away'.”—Craig Crews, PhD
See the highlight about Dr. Crews' published study.
How Microbes on Your Skin May Affect the Risk and Progression of Cancer
“My question was, ‘Is there a skin microbiome skin cancer link?’ So, taken all together our hypothesis that these skin microbes that can increase inflammation in the skin can increase the rate and severity of SCC [squamous cell carcinoma]. Our corollary hypothesis is that the absence of microbes. . . . will change the rate and recurrence of tumor progression. And really the translational impact here is that modifying the skin microbiome may allow us to modify the risk or the severity of, or onset of, this very common skin cancer.”—Julia Oh, PhD
Listen to the podcast with Dr. Oh.
Also see: Microorganisms on Your Skin May Relate to Skin Cancer Risk
Study Finds that Melanoma Cells Can Quickly Adapt to Resist Anti-Cancer Drugs
“While much of the field of cancer biology has focused on how genetic mutations drive drug resistance, the signaling plasticity involved in non-genetic drug resistance is only now beginning to be appreciated.”—Sabrina Spencer, PhD
See the highlight about Dr. Spencer's published studies.
ACS Cancer Prevention Studies
Studying Skin Cancer Causes and Prevention
The Cancer Prevention and Survivorship team in the American Cancer Society’s Population Science Department:
- Analyzes data about the link between lifestyle and skin cancer on an ongoing basis through the Cancer Prevention Study II (CPS-II). It began in 1982 and tracks about 1.2 million American men and women from all 50 states.
- Conducts Cancer Prevention Study 3 (CPS-3) to better understand ways to prevent cancer, including skin cancer. It started in 2013 and includes over 304,000 American men and women from all over the US and Puerto Rico.
Extramural Discovery Grants in Skin Cancer
The American Cancer Society funds scientists who conduct research about cancer at medical schools, universities, research institutes, and hospitals throughout the US. We use a rigorous and independent peer review process to select the most innovative research projects proposals to fund.
68
Grants
Total Skin Cancer Grants in Effect as of March 1, 2021
$25
Million
Total Skin Cancer Grant Funding in Effect as of March 1, 2021
ACS Skin Cancer Research News
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Researchers Identify States Where Improved Sun Protection Could Prevent the Most Melanomas
Rates of skin cancer in the US are rising, even though most cases are preventable because they’re related to sun exposure and indoor tanning. A study in the International Journal of Cancer found that 91% of all melanomas in the US were linked with ultraviolet (UV) radiation—mostly due to sun exposure. That rate was even higher among non-Hispanic whites, at 94%. -
Study: Lack of Education About Melanoma May Contribute to Black-White Survival Disparities
It’s true that people with darker skin have a lower risk of melanoma. But as a recent study showed, it’s also true that non-Hispanic Black Americans are more likely to have lower survival rates when they are diagnosed. That’s partly because compared with non-Hispanic whites, people with darker skin are more often diagnosed with later-stage melanoma (after it’s spread). It’s also because the most common type of melanoma among non-Hispanic Blacks—called acral lentiginous melanoma (ALM)—has a lower survival rate. -
Dispelling Myths to Decrease Skin Cancer in Latinos
Having darker skin doesn’t prevent skin cancer. A new study is looking at myths about sun protection and Latinos in order to develop resources to help. -
Zebrafish Research Shows Promise for Melanoma, Brain Cancer, and More
American Cancer Society-funded researcher Rodney Stewart, PhD, uses zebrafish to unlock clues to melanoma and pediatric brain tumors.