Cancer

This topic area covers statistics and information relating to cancer in Hull including local strategic need and service provision. Further information relating to the national screening programmes to detect breast, cervical and colorectal cancer are given within Screening and the NHS Health Check under Prevention within Adults.

This page contains information from the Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Fingertips. Information is taken ‘live’ from the site so uses the latest available data from Fingertips and displays it on this page. As a result, some comments on this page may relate to an earlier period of time until this page is next updated (see review dates at the end of this page).

In July 2022, Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) ceased to exist and were replaced by the Integrated Care System. The sub Integrated Care Board areas which include Hull are within the Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board. In Fingertips, the sub-ICB area referenced by 03F relates to Hull (see Integrated Care Board for the codes relating to the other local sub-ICB areas).

For some indicators on Fingertips and other data given elsewhere, data is still being presented at CCG level (and for Humber, Coast and Vale) and has not yet been updated for sub-ICBs. However, for Hull the geographical area for the CCG and the sub-ICB area (03F) are the same so the information can still be examined and compared to understand the health needs within Hull.

The Office for National Statistics ‘back-date’ their recent estimates of the resident population once more accurate Census data becomes available. Their revised estimates are due to be released in November 2023. This has delayed the updating of this page as these population estimates are used to calculate mortality rates in the local analyses. Furthermore, the Office for Health Improvement & Disparities are waiting for the back-dated population estimates to be released before they update some of their indicators on Fingertips, and this includes their mortality rate indicators. The Office for Health Improvement & Disparities have not given a date when their indicators on Fingertips will be updated following release of the back-dated population estimates.

Headlines

• One in two people will develop some form of cancer during their lifetime.
• The high current and historical prevalence of smoking, and increased levels of poor diet, physical inactivity and obesity result in higher levels of cancer in Hull.
• People in Hull are more likely to present with their cancer in an emergency setting rather than through their GP or through an elective procedure, and a slightly higher percentage of cancers in Hull are diagnosed at a later stage at diagnosis compared to people throughout the rest of England which impacts on survival and mortality rates.
• In Hull, during the three year period 2018-20, there were 2,261 new cases of cancer which were diagnosed among men and 2,133 new cases of cancer diagnosed among women. Among men, prostate cancer accounted for the most new cancers diagnosed (501) followed by lung cancer (411) and colorectal cancer (254). Among women, new cases of breast cancer was the highest (549) followed by lung cancer (372) and colorectal cancer (221). The incidence rate of new cases of cancer in Hull is significantly higher than England particularly so for cancers of the lung (70% higher than England), stomach (60% higher than England) and kidney (34% higher than England). Overall, the cancer incidence in Hull was 15% higher than England for 2018-20.
• North Carr, West Carr, Orchard Park, Ings, Longhill & Bilton Grange, Sutton, Marfleet, St Andrew’s & Docklands, Pickering and Central all have statistically significantly higher incidence rates compared to England, and 16 out of Hull’s 21 wards have statistically significantly higher incidence rates for lung cancer with North Carr, Orchard Park, Marfleet, St Andrew’s & Docklands and Central having more than twice the rate of new lung cancer cases compared to England. Only Holderness has a statistically significantly higher rate of new colorectal cancers, and only Marfleet has a statistically significantly higher rate of new prostate cancer cases compared to England.
• In Hull, over the last 18 years between 2001-03 and 2018-20, the rate of new cancers diagnosed has decreased by 1% among men and increased by 15% among women. Over the same period, new cases of lung cancer reduced by 16% for men but increased by 21% for women, and new cases of colorectal cancer have reduced by 21% for men but increased by 24% for women. The rate of new cases of breast cancer has increased slightly among women in Hull by 5%, and the number of new cases of prostate cancer diagnosed has increased by 5% among men over the 18 year period.
• During 2021, there were 194 men and 162 women who died under the age of 75 years from cancer. Overall, 165 of these premature deaths from cancer were considered to be preventable with 46% of male premature deaths and 58% of female premature deaths from cancer considered to be preventable. This could be associated with the high incidence of lung cancer in Hull and its high mortality rate.
• Over the same period, there were 202 deaths from lung cancer (110 men and 92 women) for deaths for all ages. The mortality rate was 99% higher in men and 92% higher in women in Hull compared to England.
• During 2021, under 75 mortality rates from colorectal cancer are 8% lower among men in Hull compared to England and 9% higher among Hull women with 25 deaths in total among those aged under 75 years during 2021 (14 men and 11 women). Under 75 mortality rates from breast cancer were 22% higher in Hull compared to England with 24 deaths from breast cancer among women aged under 75 years during 2021.
• Mortality rates are statistically significantly higher than England in the majority of Hull’s 21 wards for both mortality at all ages and under 75 years. There was a very strong association with deprivation with under 75 year cancer mortality 1.7 times higher among people living in the most deprived areas compared to the least deprived areas of Hull (and 2.3 times higher for cancer deaths considered to be preventable).
• Between 2001-03 and 2018-20, mortality rates from cancer have been decreasing among Hull men but have remained relatively unchanged for Hull women, and whilst rates have decreased among men in Hull at a similar rate to England, the decrease in England among women has been much larger than the decrease in Hull’s mortality rate.
• Between 2001-03 and 2018-20, the mortality rate for lung cancer has decreased among men but remained relatively unchanged among women in Hull. Mortality rates have remained relatively unchanged in Hull for colorectal cancer for both men and women, and mortality rates for breast cancer have also remained relatively unchanged among Hull women with mortality rates from prostate cancer increasing in Hull men.
• One year cancer survival is available for cancers diagnosed between 2004-19 with one year follow-up to the end of 2020. Survival rates have increased over the period from 64.4% to 74.6%. It is difficult to directly compare to survival rates for England as the incidence and survival rates differ by cancer site and the percentage of different cancers by site differs between Hull and England. Nevertheless for the specific cancers of lung cancer survival rates have improved in Hull increasing by 49% from 30.4% for cancers diagnosed in 2004 to 45.2% for cancers diagnosed in 2019, although survival is higher in England for cancers diagnosed in 2019 (47.2%) and the increase in survival over the entire period has been higher in England (increased by 70%). One year survival from colorectal cancer has also improved from 70.8% in 2004 to 77.3% in 2019, but has been consistently lower than England over the period with a 3.6 percentage point difference for 2019 (England 80.9%), although the improvement in Hull over the entire period has been higher than the increase for England (increases of 9% and 7% respectively). One year survival from breast cancer diagnosed in 2019 is high at 94.1% having increased by 0.6% from 93.5% since 2004. However, the rate of increase for England has been much higher having increased by 3.2% from 94.3% to 97.3%. Thus the inequalities gap in one year survival between Hull and England has increased in relation to lung and breast cancers as well as the index measure which includes most cancers.

The Population Affected – Why Is It Important?

All Cancers

Cancer is a condition where cells in a specific part of the body grow and reproduce uncontrollably destroying healthy tissue including organs and can spread to other parts of the body (metastasis). There are over 200 different types of cancer, each with its own methods of diagnosis and treatment. One in two people will develop some form of cancer during their lifetime. In the UK, the four most common types of cancer are: lung cancer; breast cancer; prostate cancer; and bowel cancer. Treatment is often simpler and more likely to be effective when cancer is diagnosed at an early stage, so finding cancer early can make a real difference. There are two major components of early detection of cancer: education to promote early diagnosis and screening. With the ageing population, it is likely that the incidence and prevalence of cancer will increase.

Healthy eating, taking regular exercise, maintaining a healthy weight, and not smoking helps lower the risk of developing cancer. Changing lifestyle behaviours can have a dramatic effect.

Cancer Research UK have an infographic which illustrates the risk of cancer.

Screening programmes are in place for cancers of the breast, cervical and bowel (colorectal). Uptake rates for screening can be found in Screening and the NHS Health Check under Prevention within Adults.

Lung Cancer

The majority of lung cancer cases are preventable as it is estimated that 81% of all cases of lung cancer are directly attributable to smoking, and risk of developing lung cancer reduces over time once a smoker quits smoking.

Nationally, lung cancer has the fifth highest disability adjusted life years and thus has a substantial impact on the quality of people’s lives.

Prostate Cancer

The causes of prostate cancer are largely unknown. Prostate cancer can be slow to develop. So there are many men die with prostate cancer, not because of it. Despite this, there are still considerable numbers that do die from prostate cancer, and it is the most frequent cancer among men.

Breast Cancer

Whilst the causes of breast cancer are not fully understood, it is not possible to know if it can be prevented altogether. However, although not definitive, there are benefits for women who maintain a healthy weight, exercise regularly and who have a low intake of saturated fat and alcohol. Being overweight or obese, particularly after the menopause, causes more oestrogen to be produced which can increase the risk of breast cancer. Family history is also an important risk factor for breast cancer. Screening for breast cancer is the single biggest factor that allows for early diagnosis. Among women, breast cancer is the most frequently occurring cancer.

Colorectal Cancer

There is an increased risk of bowel cancer among those aged 60+ years, who eat a diet high in red or processed meats and low in fibre, who are overweight or obese, physical inactive or smokers, have a high alcohol intake, have a family history of bowel cancer, or have another medical conditions such as severe ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease.

The Hull Picture

Screening

Further information relating to the national screening programmes to detect breast, cervical and colorectal cancer are given within Screening and the NHS Health Check within Prevention under Adults.

Incidence

Overall Across Hull

From the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service, the table below gives the total number of new cancers diagnosed over the three year period 2018-20 for Hull Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) by cancer site for men and women separately. The International Classification of Disease version 10 codes has been included for each cancer site for reference. Not all cancer sites are included (most have too smaller numbers to present including male cases of breast cancer) so the figures for each individual cancer site do not sum to the total.

Over the three year period 2018-20, there were 4,349 new cases of cancer excluding non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) that were diagnosed giving an average of 1,450 new diagnoses each year.

Lung, breast, prostate and colorectal cancers were the most commonly occurring cancers in Hull over the three year period.

Cancer site	ICD 10 code	Males	Females	Persons
Oesophagus	C15	63	39	102
Stomach	C16	66	32	98
Colorectal	C18-C20	254	221	475
Liver and intrahepatic bile ducts	C22	42	26	68
Pancreas	C25	62	52	114
Trachea, bronchus and lung	C33-C34	411	372	783
Breast	C50		549
Cervical	C53		39	39
Uterus	C54-C55		111	111
Ovary	C56-C57		76	76
Prostate	C61	501		501
Kidney, except renal pelvis	C64	93	64	157
Bladder	C67	81	37	118
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	C82-C86	91	66	157
Multiple myeloma and plasma cell neoplasms	C90	35	26	61
Leukaemia	C91-C95	57	34	91
All cancers excluding NMSC	C00-C97 excl C44	2,261	2,133	4,349

The table below gives the standardised incidence rate so compares the number of new cases in Hull with England after adjusting for the age structure of Hull’s population. The incidence rates are given as the number of new cancers diagnosed within the three year period 2018-20 per 100,000 person-years. For most cancers, the numbers are relatively small so it is not possible to examine incidence for males and females separately.

The rates are substantially higher in Hull for lung cancer, being 71% higher than England for men and 69% higher for women. Rates are also substantially higher for stomach cancer (60% higher than England) and kidney cancer (34% higher than England). Incidence rates are also higher in Hull compared to England for cancers of the oesophagus, colon and rectum, liver and intrahepatic bile ducts, pancreas, cervical, uterus and bladder as well as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Compared to England, the age-standardised incidence rate was lower in Hull for cancers of the skin, breast, ovary and prostate as well as multiple myeloma and malignant plasma cell neoplasms, and leukaemia.

Overall, the incidence of all cancers in Hull compared to England is 15% higher for men and women combined (13% higher for men and 17% higher for women).

Cancer site	ICD 10 code	Gender	Hull	England
Oesophagus	C15	Persons	16.2	14.3
Stomach	C16	Persons	15.7	9.8
Colorectal	C18-C20	Males	85.5	81.6
Colorectal	C18-C20	Females	65.6	55.5
Colorectal	C18-C20	Persons	75.0	67.5
Liver and intrahepatic bile ducts	C22	Persons	10.6	10.3
Pancreas	C25	Persons	18.0	17.3
Trachea, bronchus and lung	C33-C34	Males	142.1	83.1
Trachea, bronchus and lung	C33-C34	Females	111.5	65.9
Trachea, bronchus and lung	C33-C34	Persons	125.5	73.4
Malignant melanoma of skin	C43	Persons	17.4	26.6
Breast	C50	Females	157.7	161.3
Cervical	C53	Females	10.5	9.3
Uterus	C54-C55	Females	32.7	28.8
Ovary	C56-C57	Females	21.5	22.6
Prostate	C61	Males	171.2	181.2
Kidney, except renal pelvis	C64	Persons	24.2	18.1
Bladder	C67	Persons	19.1	16.5
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	C82-C86	Persons	24.1	21.1
Multiple myeloma and plasma cell neoplasms	C90	Persons	9.6	9.8
Leukaemia	C91-C95	Persons	14.0	15.2
All cancers	C00-C97 excl C44	Males	742.8	658.3
All cancers	C00-C97 excl C44	Females	622.5	531.0
All cancers	C00-C97 excl C44	Persons	674.9	586.6

Rates Across Hull’s Wards

Within the Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Local Health, the standardised incidence ratios are given for each electoral ward for all cancers, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer and prostate cancer. The incidence ratio gives the rate of new cases of cancers that have been diagnosed within the time period for Hull compared to England. The data presented below relates to the five year period 2015-19 and the standardised incidence ratios are given together with 95% confidence intervals (which gives a range of values where the true value is likely to fall taking into account random variation). The standardised incidence ratios are standardised to England with the ratio for England being 100 for the period 2015-19. So that any ratio above 100 denotes that the ward has a higher incidence rate for the specific cancer compared to England for the period 2015-19, and a ratio below 100 denotes a lower incidence rate.

If the 95% confidence interval does not contain the value of 100, this means that the incidence rate for the ward is statistically significantly different from England after allowing for differences in the age structure between Hull and England.

All Cancers

The lower 95% confidence limit for North Carr, West Carr, Orchard Park, Ings, Longhill & Bilton Grange, Sutton, Marfleet, St Andrew’s & Docklands, Pickering and Central are all higher than 100 so the cancer incidence rate – after adjusting for the age distribution of the ward – is statistically significantly higher than England.

Marfleet and Central have the highest new rate of cancers diagnosed in 2015-19 in Hull which are more than 20% higher than the incidence rate in England.

Lung Cancer

The cancer incidence rate for lung cancer is statistically significantly higher than England after adjusting for the age structure of the local population for 16 out of 21 of Hull’s electoral wards. The 95% confidence interval contains the value of 100 for only Kingswood, Beverley & Newland, Holderness, Avenue and Bricknell.

The rate of new lung cancer cases is more than twice as high as England for North Carr, Orchard Park, Marfleet, St Andrew’s & Docklands and Central.

Colorectal Cancer

For the majority of wards in Hull, the number of new cases of colorectal cancer is not statistically significantly different than England with the only exception being Holderness where the rate is 44% higher than England.

Breast Cancer

The rate of new cases of breast cancer is lower than England for the majority of wards in Hull with Ings and Southcoates also having a statistically significantly lower incidence rate of breast cancer compared to England. None of Hull’s wards have a statistically significantly higher rate of new breast cancer cases compared to England.

Prostate Cancer

The incidence rate for prostate cancer is also lower than England for the majority of Hull’s wards and is statistically significantly lower for St Andrew’s & Docklands. In contrast, Marfleet has a statistically significantly higher rate of new prostate cancers compared to England. There were too fewer cases of new prostate cancer for Kingswood and University over the five year period 2015-19 so the incidence ratio is not presented for these two wards.

Trends Over Time

All Cancers

Over the last 17 years between 2001-03 and 2017-19, the incidence rate of all cancers has increased by 5% for men and by 17% for women, although between 2017-19 and 2018-20 there has been a decrease in the incidence of 6% for men and 2% for women which might be associated with fewer new cases of cancers being detected between March and December 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Overall, between 2001-03 and 2018-20, there has been a decrease in cancer incidence of 1% among men, but an increase of 15% among women.

In 2018-20, the standardised incidence rate for all cancers was 12% higher in Hull compared to England for men and 17% higher for women. For men, the cancer incidence rate in Hull has followed a reasonably similar pattern to that for England. For women, the incidence rate increased gradually in both Hull and England to the period 2011-13 to 2013-15, but the latest rate for 2018-20 is higher than 2011-13 for Hull whereas for England has decreased in the last five years.

Lung Cancer

For lung cancer among Hull men, the incidence rate has fallen by 16% over the last 18 years between 2001-03 and 2018-20.

Among Hull women, over the 17 years between 2001-03 and 2017-19, the lung cancer incidence rate increased by more than one-third (34%). However, the rate decreased by 9% in the latest year which could be associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and fewer new cancers being diagnosed. Therefore, over the entire 18 year period between 2001-3 and 2018-20, the lung cancer incidence rate had increased by more than one-fifth for Hull women (21%).

The lung cancer incidence rate was 83% higher among Hull men compared to Hull women in 2001-03, but the rate is only 27% higher in 2018-20.

The age standardised incidence rate per 100,000 population for lung cancer is statistically significantly higher than England with the rate being very much higher in Hull. The latest incidence rate is 71% higher in Hull compared to England (71% higher for men and 69% higher for women).

There is more variability in the lung cancer incidence rate in Hull, but there has been a reasonably similar rate of change with England for both men (-16% versus -20%) and women (+21% versus +24%).

Colorectal Cancer

For colorectal cancer, the age standardised incidence rates among Hull men have been consistently and statistically significantly higher than the rates among Hull women. Over the 18 year period, there has been a reduction of 21% in the incidence rate for colorectal cancer for men, but for women the incidence of colorectal cancer has increased by 24%.

In Hull, the rate of new cases of colorectal diagnosed among men within 2001-03 was more than double the rate in women, but for cancers diagnosed within 2018-20, the rate was only 30% higher among men compared to women.

There has been no statistically significant difference in the incidence rate for colorectal cancer between Hull and England over the last 18 years with the exception of men for 2001-03 and 2002-04.

The rate of decrease in the incidence rate has been much greater in Hull compared to England among men (-21% versus -3%) and among women the increase in the incidence rate in Hull has been much greater than England (+24% versus +2%).

Breast Cancer

The incidence rate for breast cancer among women has varied between 140 and 160 per 100,000 population over the last 18 years, but the rate in 2017-19 reached a new high of 166 per 100,000 population, although decreased to 158 per 100,000 population for 2018-20.

The incidence of breast cancer has generally been lower than England over the 18 year period. The latest rate for Hull for 2018-20 is similar to England (158 versus 161 per 100,000 population). The rate of change over the last 17 years has also been similar for Hull (+5%) and England (+4%).

Prostate Cancer

Over the last 17 years between 2001-03 and 2018-20, the incidence of prostate cancer has increased in Hull by 33%, although there was a fall of 10% in the last year, so the overall change over the entire period is 20%.

The incidence rate for prostate cancer has been reasonably similar in Hull to the rate in England over the entire 18 year period, and the rate in Hull is currently slightly lower than England (171 versus 181 per 100,000 population respectively).

Two week wait

The two week wait appointment system was introduced so that any patient with symptoms that might indicate cancer could be seen by a specialist as soon as possible. The Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Fingertips presents indicators relating to the two week wait for the sub Integrated Care Board areas which include Hull within the Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board. The sub-ICB area referenced by 03F relates to Hull (see Integrated Care Board for the codes relating to the other local sub-ICB areas).

In 2021/22, Hull had a lower number of two week wait referrals per 100,000 population compared to England (3,427 versus 4,323), although the percentage of cancers diagnosed from the two week wait referrals was slightly higher than England (6.7% versus 6.2%). The percentage of cancers treated out of those two week wait referrals was slightly lower in Hull compared to England (52.5% versus 54.4%).

As the number of two week wait referrals increased as the service become more established, the percentage of cancer diagnoses from those referrals decreased as the majority of those urgent referrals do not result in a cancer diagnosis. However, unsurprisingly the two-week wait referral rate decreased between 2019/20 and 2020/21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, although there were more referrals for 2021/22.

If there were many more referrals for a geographical area compared to England, then it might be expected that the percentage resulting in a cancer diagnosis and subsequently requiring treatment could be lower. However, there are fewer referrals in Hull, and with a higher incidence rate of cancer this suggests that people are not visiting their GP when they have symptoms that may signify cancer and/or that GPs when they see such symptoms in their patients are not using the two week wait referral system. It is more common for people living in more deprived areas to delay visiting their GP, so it is perhaps not surprising that the rate of two week wait referrals is lower in Hull.

Information is also available on Fingertips for the specific cancer sites of breast, lower gastrointestinal, lung and skin.

For 2021/22, the referral rate in Hull was similar to England for breast cancer (820 versus 824 per 100,000 population), 23% lower for lower gastrointestinal cancers (614 versus 799 per 100,000 population), 14% higher for lung cancer (111 versus 97 per 100,000 population) and 24% lower for skin cancer (716 versus 936 per 100,000 population).

It is possible that the incidence of these cancers differs between Hull and England, but it is also possible that the relatively low two week wait referral rate in Hull means that residents are not accessing cancer treatment as quickly as others do across other geographical areas. The rate of two week wait referrals for lung cancer is the only one similar to England for Hull. However, because residents in Hull have very high rates of smoking both historically and currently compared to England, the incidence of lung cancer is considerably higher. As mentioned above, for 2018-20, the lung cancer incidence rate was 70% higher in Hull compared to England which perhaps means that the two week wait referrals for lung cancer in Hull should be much higher than it actually is.

The rate of two week wait referrals for breast has been consistently lower in Hull compared to England over the last decade, although the referral rate has been increasing in the last two years at a faster rate in Hull, and for the first time – since 2012/13 – the rate of two week wait referrals for breast cancer is similar to England for the latest period 2021/22.

The rate of two week wait referrals for breast cancer does not appear to have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The rate of two week wait referrals for lower gastrointestinal cancers has been consistently lower than England over the last eight years, although the rate in Hull has been following a similar pattern to England. The rate has increased since 2017/18 with a slight decrease between 2019/20 and 2020/21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic with an increase for 2021/22.

The rate of two week wait referrals for lung cancer has been consistently higher or similar in Hull compared to England over the last decade, although the rate of referrals has been decreasing in Hull since 2016/17.

The rate of two week wait referrals for lung cancer appears to have been significantly adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic with a sharp fall between 2019/20 and 2020/21, although there has been a sharp increase in 2021/22 to a similar referral rate that was seen in 2019/20.

The rate of two week wait referrals for skin cancer in Hull has been consistently lower compared to England. There was a slight reduction in the rate of referrals between 2019/20 and 2020/21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The change over time in Hull has followed a similar pattern to the change for England with the exception of the latest year 2021/22 where the rate in Hull increased only slightly in the last year (to a level below that pre-pandemic) compared to a relatively large increase for England (to a level higher than pre-pandemic levels).

Cancer Stage at Diagnosis

The Office for Health Improvement & Disparities’ Fingertips gives the percentage of cancers diagnosed at an early stage (stages 1 and 2). For 2020, for cancers where staging was possible and recorded, just under half of cancers were diagnosed at stages 1 or 2 in Hull (48.9%) which was slightly lower than England (52.3%).

The percentage is given out of the total number of new cases whose stage is known (1, 2, 3 and 4) for the following cancer sites: invasive malignancies of lung, oesophagus, stomach, colorectal, pancreas, invasive melanomas of the skin, breast, cervix, uterus, ovary, prostate, testis, kidney, bladder, Hodgkin Lymphoma, thyroid, larynx, oropharynx, oral cavity and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

The percentage in Hull has been quite variable between 2013 and 2017 at around 50%, although the percentage increased to 53% for 2019. The decrease for 2020 could be associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, and reduced access or perceived access to primary and secondary care resulting in later diagnosis for a small percentage of patients.

NHS Digital also provide information on the percentage of cancers diagnosed at stage 1 and 2.

However, some cancers are more likely to be detected at an early stage, so the percentage of cancers diagnosed at a late stage can be depend on the distribution of the types of cancer. NHS Digital provides an estimate of the percentage of cancers diagnosed at an early stage adjusted for the differing case mix of patients with regard to diagnosis, socio-economic factors, and other variables.

NHS Digital include staging information on oropharynx, oral cavity, oesophagus, colorectal, pancreas, lung, melanoma of the skin, breast, uterus, ovary, prostate, testis, kidney, bladder, Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

For all years, the percentage of these cancers diagnosed at an early stage is lower in Hull compared to England. However, once the difference in the case-mix of the patients is taken into consideration, then the percentage of cancers diagnosed at an early stage is generally higher or comparable to England.

Hospital Activity

Fingertips gives the number of emergency admissions for cancer per 100,000 population as well as the number of people diagnosed with cancer via an emergency route per 100,000 GP practice population (“number of emergency presentations”) and diagnosed via a non-emergency route per 100,000 GP practice population (“number of other presentations”) for the sub Integrated Care Board areas which include Hull within the Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board. The sub-ICB area referenced by 03F relates to Hull (see Integrated Care Board for the codes relating to the other local sub-ICB areas).

For 2021/22, the rates of emergency admissions relating to cancer and the rate of cancers diagnosed through an emergency route in Hull are considerably higher than England, but the rate of cancers diagnosed through a non-emergency route in Hull are slightly lower than England. The number of emergency cancer admissions is 23% higher in Hull (630 versus 514 per 100,000 population) whereas the number of cancers diagnosed through an emergency route is 34% higher in Hull compared to England (118 versus 88 per 100,000 population).

The fact that a higher proportion of people in Hull are diagnosed with cancer through an emergency route means that fewer people are being diagnosed through primary care and non-emergency routes, which has an impact on stage of diagnosis and the commencement of treatment, with the potential to affect mortality and survival rates.

The rate of emergency admissions with cancer had been between 500 and 600 per 100,000 population between 2009/10 and 2017/18, but increased sharply to 691 and to 760 for 2018/19 and 2019/20 respectively. There has since been a sharp fall to 481 per 100,000 population for 2020/21 and it is likely that the COVID-19 pandemic is influential in the change in the rate. However, the rate has increased considerably between 2020/21 and 2021/22, although the latest rate is lower than it was in 2019/20 prior to the pandemic.

Whilst the rate of emergency presentations for cancer in Hull has decreased since 2009/10, the rate has remained relatively unchanged since 2015/16 including the most recent year 2020/21 which one might have anticipated to have been affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The rate increased between 2020/21 and 2021/22, and this is the largest increase since 2012/13.

Between 2013/14 and 2019/20, the rate of non-emergency presentations for cancer has been relatively static at around 320 presentations per 100,000 population. The rate fell to 287 per 100,000 population in 2020/21 likely had increased slightly since 2009/10 although the increase was slight and not a smooth trend, but the rate fell between 2019/20 and 2020/21 likely associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. The rate increased between 2020/21 and 2021/22 which is again likely associated with increased demand following the pandemic. Given the low rate for 2020/21, it is likely that some of the new cancers diagnosed in 2021/22 have been diagnosed at a later stage due to delays in diagnosis.

The number of inpatient or day-case colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy procedures per 100,000 GP registered population are given on Fingertips.

For 2021/22, the rate of colonoscopy procedures in Hull (03F) is slightly higher than England (720 versus 712), but the rates of sigmoidoscopy (303 versus 323) and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy (976 versus 1,113) procedures are both lower in Hull.

The rate of colonoscopy procedures had been consistently increasing in Hull, but fell in 2020/21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the rate increased in 2021/22 although is slightly below the pre-pandemic levels of 2019/20. A similar pattern in the rate of colonoscopies occurred for England and the region, although the increase between 2020/21 and 2021/22 was greater in Hull compared to England.

The rate of sigmoidoscopy procedures had been increasing between 2009/10 and 2014/15 to a high of 824 procedures per 100,00 population but fell quite sharply to 427 in 2017/18. The rate since increased slightly to 482 per 100,000 population in 2019/20 before falling very sharply by 66% to 173 in 2019/20. Some of the changes could be in the way services are administered locally and the differences in the types of procedures undertaken, but sharp fall in 2020/21 is likely associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. The rate recovered slightly in 2021/22 but the latest rate is still considerably lower than the pre-pandemic levels of 2019/20 being 40% lower in 2021/22 than 2019/20.

The number of upper gastrointestinal endoscopy procedures per 100,000 population showed a similar pattern to that observed for sigmoidoscopy procedures. There was a sharp fall of 54% between 2019/20 and 2020/21 by 54% due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and whilst the increase between 2020/21 and 2021/22 was greater in Hull than England or the region, the rate in 2021/22 was still lower than it had been in 2019/20.

Mortality

Overall Across Hull

Percentage of Deaths Due to Cancer

For 2020, the percentage of deaths with an underlying cause of cancer in Hull is similar to England for all ages, and among the lowest in Yorkshire and Humber for those aged under 65 years.

All Cancers

Fingertips gives the under 75 year mortality rate from cancer. For 2021, the age standardised mortality rate per 100,000 population (standardised to the European Standard Population) for Hull is 165.6 which is 36% higher than England (121.5) and highest across Yorkshire and Humber.

Compared to England, the cancer mortality rates were 47% higher in Hull among males and 37% higher among females aged under 75 years for 2021.

Fingertips also present the standardised mortality ratios for cancer both for deaths for all ages and deaths which occurred prior to the age of 75 years. In 2016-20, cancer mortality rates in Hull are 31% higher than England for all ages and 29% higher for those aged under 75 years.

During 2021, there were 356 deaths from cancer among Hull residents that occurred under the age of 75 years.