Common Adolescent and Young Adults (AYAs) Cancers

Adolescent and Young Adults (AYAs) Cancer refers to cancers that occur in people between 15 and 39 years old. The distribution of cancer types in this age group also differs from that of other age groups.

The most common types of cancer in AYAs include, but are not limited to:

Nasopharyngeal Cancer
Lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin’s and Hodgkin’s)
Osteosarcoma (Cancer of connective tissue such as muscles and bones)
Thyroid Cancer
Testicular Cancer
Female reproductive tract cancer (Cervical and ovarian cancer)
Colorectal Cancer
Breast Cancer

It is worth noting that certain types of adolescent and young adults cancers have unique age distributions. For example, lymphoma is more common in individuals under 25, while breast, cervical, and colorectal cancers are more common in those over 25. Gender is also an important factor. Young female are more likely to develop cancer than young male, but the mortality rates of male and female are about the same.

Latest AYAs cancer data

According to global statistics in 2019, there were more than 1.3 million new cancer cases among AYAs and nearly 400,000 deaths.

In Hong Kong, according to 2021 data from the Hospital Authority, the total number of new cases of cancer among AYAs has reached 1,590, with an average of 4 new diagnoses every day, accounting for 4.1% of the new cancer cases in Hong Kong. In just the past five years, Hong Kong has accumulated as many as 7,700 AYAs cancer cases, which is a worrying situation. What is even more regrettable is that the number of deaths from AYA cancer in Hong Kong has reached as high as 157 in 2021, making it the second leading cause of death among youth in Hong Kong.