Although there has been considerable progress in reducing cancer incidence in the United States, the number of cancer survivors continues to increase due to the aging and growth of the population and improvements in survival rates. As a result, it is increasingly important to understand the unique medical and psychosocial needs of survivors and be aware of resources that can assist patients, caregivers, and health care providers in navigating the various phases of cancer survivorship. To highlight the challenges and opportunities to serve these survivors, the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute estimated the prevalence of cancer survivors on January 1, 2012 and January 1, 2022, by cancer site. Data from Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registries were used to describe median age and stage at diagnosis and survival; data from the National Cancer Data Base and the SEER-Medicare Database were used to describe patterns of cancer treatment. An estimated 13.7 million Americans with a history of cancer were alive on January 1, 2012, and by January 1, 2022, that number will increase to nearly 18 million. The 3 most prevalent cancers among males are prostate (43%), colorectal (9%), and melanoma of the skin (7%), and those among females are breast (41%), uterine corpus (8%), and colorectal (8%). This article summarizes common cancer treatments, survival rates, and posttreatment concerns and introduces the new National Cancer Survivorship Resource Center, which has engaged more than 100 volunteer survivorship experts nationwide to develop tools for cancer survivors, caregivers, health care professionals, advocates, and policy makers.

Background Cancer survivors represent a growing population, heterogeneous in their need for medical care, psychosocial support, and practical assistance. To inform survivorship research and practice, this manuscript will describe the prevalent population of cancer survivors in terms of overall numbers and prevalence by cancer site and time since diagnosis. Methods Incidence and survival data from 1975–2007 were obtained from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program and population projections from the United States (US) Census Bureau. Cancer prevalence for 2012 and beyond was estimated using the Prevalence Incidence Approach Model, assuming constant future incidence and survival trends but dynamic projections of the US population. Results As of January 1, 2012, approximately 13.7 million cancer survivors were living in the US with prevalence projected to approach 18 million by 2022. Sixty-four percent of this population have survived ≥ 5 years; 40% have survived ≥ 10 years; and 15% have survived ≥ 20 years after diagnosis. Over the next decade, the number of people who have lived ≥ 5 years after their cancer diagnosis is projected to increase approximately 37% to 11.9 million. Conclusions A coordinated agenda for research and practice is needed to address cancer survivors’ long-term medical, psychosocial, and practical needs across the survivorship trajectory. Impact Prevalence estimates for cancer survivors across the survivorship trajectory will inform the national research agenda as well as future projections about the health service needs of this population.

Purpose: To estimate the number of individuals in the United States diagnosed with cancer as children (ages 0-19 years) as of 2005, with a focus on those surviving for >30 years. Methods: To estimate the national prevalence of survivors of childhood cancers, we used data from the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results program from 1975 to 2004. Long-term childhood cancer survivors, diagnosed before 1975, were estimated using incidence and survival models extrapolated into years before 1975. Results: We estimated that there are a total of 328,652 survivors of childhood cancer in the United States as of January 1, 2005, of these, 24% have survived >30 years since diagnosis. The cancer sites with the largest number of survivors are brain (51,650), acute lymphoblastic leukemia (49,271), germ cell tumors (34,169), and Hodgkin lymphoma (31,598). Sites with higher proportions of survivors diagnosed >30 years ago are germ cell (43%), soft tissue (38%), renal (34%), and bone (26%). Historical trends from Connecticut data show major improvements in survival for all of the childhood cancer sites. Conclusion: The number of survivors of childhood cancers is expected to increase in the future consequent to the lifesaving advances in treatment introduced after 1970, especially for acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Because this population is at increased risk for illness-related morbidity and mortality, appreciating the number of survivors who were treated as children is important both to determining the national cancer burden and planning for the future health care needs of these individuals. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2009;18(4):1033–40)