Prostate Cancer Statistics – 2026
The American Cancer Society projects that in 2026, there will be about 2.1 million new cancer cases and 626,140 cancer deaths in the United States. Although cancer remains a major cause of death, the mortality rate has continued to decline through 2023, preventing an estimated 4.8 million deaths since 1991, largely due to reduced smoking, earlier detection, and improved treatments.
The prostate cancer incidence rate dropped by almost 40% from 2007 to 2014 because of an 8.4% per year decline in the diagnosis of localized disease in parallel with recommendations against screening by the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) for men aged 75 years and older in 2008 and for all men in 2012. In 2018, the UPSTF upgraded its screening recommendation to informed decision-making for asymptomatic men aged 55-69 years.
From 2014 through 2022, the incidence rate rose by 2.9% per year, with a larger increase for regional-stage and distant-stage disease. Advanced-stage diagnoses are increasing in men of all ages, likely due to the expanded use of MRI. MRI-integrated screening also reduced the number of biopsies and the detection of clinically insignificant cancers.
Black people with prostate cancer have twice the mortality of White people. An estimated 313,780 new cases (1 in 8 men) and 35,770 deaths will occur. Black men should begin and repeat screening earlier, starting at age 45.
Survival has improved substantially . The overall 5-year relative survival rate for cancers diagnosed during 2015–2021 reached 70%, up from 63% in the mid-1990s. Gains were especially notable for advanced and high-mortality cancers, including myeloma, liver cancer, metastatic melanoma, rectal cancer, and lung cancer, with survival rates in some cases doubling or more.
CA:Cancer J Clin 2025 PMID:40892160
