Bowel Cancer Becomes Top Under-50 Killer in Norway as Death Rates Stall Since 2020
Updated
Updated · The Sun · Aug 14
Bowel Cancer Becomes Top Under-50 Killer in Norway as Death Rates Stall Since 2020
1 articles · Updated · The Sun · Aug 14
Summary
Norway data show bowel cancer has been the leading cause of cancer death among under-50s since 2020, even as mortality from other major cancers in that age group kept falling.
13,250 people aged 20 to 49 died from cancer in Norway between 1996 and 2024, while the overall young-adult cancer death rate dropped about 2.8% a year; bowel cancer alone failed to post a similar decline.
Researchers said the stalled mortality trend may reflect more diagnoses at advanced stages, a risk heightened when younger patients face delays because symptoms are mistaken for common conditions.
UK figures point the same way: bowel cancer diagnoses in 25- to 49-year-olds have risen 72% since the 1990s, versus 6% in ages 50 to 59 and 3% in ages 60 to 74.
The findings add to wider concern in the UK and US that obesity is helping drive more early-onset colorectal cancer, even as routine NHS home screening still mainly targets people aged 50 to 74.