Cancer cases in Norway passed 40,000 for the first time in 2025, but improving survival and prevention tell a more complex story.
Each year, Norway publishes a detailed report tracking cancer across the population.
The newly released ‘Cancer in Norway 2025' report offers the latest insight into one of the country’s most important public health challenges, from the most common cancer types to survival rates, mortality, prevention and the growing number of people living after a diagnosis.
The headline figure is striking. For the first time, Norway recorded more than 40,000 new cancer cases in a single year.
But that does not mean the story is simply one of cancer becoming more common across the board. Norway’s population is growing and ageing, which means more cancer cases are expected even when the underlying risk is stable or falling.
The latest figures show a more nuanced picture: cancer rates are falling among men, rising slightly among women, survival continues to improve, and long-term prevention efforts are producing major results for some cancer types.
Cancer Cases in Norway Pass 40,000
In 2025, a total of 40,364 new cancer cases were reported in Norway. Of these, 21,334 were among men and 19,030 were among women. Men accounted for 52.9% of all new cases, while women accounted for 47.1%.
This is an increase from the previous year and marks the first time Norway has passed 40,000 new cancer cases in a single year.
At first glance, that sounds alarming. But the report itself stresses that cancer trends should not be judged by one-year changes alone. There is always some random variation from year to year, and the Cancer Registry typically receives information about an additional 1–2% of cases after publication that should have been included in the previous year’s figures.
To understand the real direction of travel, it is more useful to look at age-standardised rates over several years. These figures adjust for changes in the age structure of the population, which is especially important in Norway, where older people make up an increasing share of the population.
When comparing the most recent five-year period, 2021–2025, with the previous period, 2016–2020, the overall age-standardised cancer rate fell by 2.7% among men. Among women, it rose by 3.6%.
So, while the number of cancer diagnoses is rising, the underlying risk is not moving in the same direction for everyone.
The Most Common Cancers in Norway
The most frequently diagnosed cancers in Norway remain broadly familiar, although there are important differences between men and women.
Among men, prostate cancer remains the most common cancer by a wide margin, with 5,340 new cases reported in 2025. It was followed by non-melanoma skin cancer, lung cancer, colon cancer and melanoma of the skin.
Among women, breast cancer remains the most common diagnosis, with 4,498 new cases in 2025. Lung cancer, colon cancer, non-melanoma skin cancer and melanoma of the skin completed the top five.
Together, these five most common cancers in each sex accounted for 57.9% of all new cancer cases in Norway in 2025.
The figures show how concentrated Norway’s cancer burden is in a relatively small number of cancer types. They also underline why prevention, screening and early diagnosis programmes tend to focus so heavily on breast, cervical, colorectal, prostate, lung and skin cancers.
Why More Cases Do Not Tell the Whole Story
One of the most important messages from the 2025 report is that more cases do not automatically mean a higher cancer risk.
Norway’s population has grown significantly since cancer registration began in the 1950s. People are also living longer, and cancer is more common in older age groups. As a result, the total number of cancer diagnoses can rise even if age-adjusted risk is stable or falling.
That is why the report places such emphasis on age-standardised rates. These rates make it possible to compare cancer risk over time without the picture being distorted by an older population.
On that measure, several major cancers have moved in a positive direction. The report points to declining rates for prostate, lung and colorectal cancer among men. Among women, lung cancer and gynaecological cancers have declined, with cervical cancer showing a particularly strong reduction.
At the same time, skin cancers continue to rise substantially in both sexes, and breast cancer rates among women have increased significantly over the past decade.
That is the central tension in the 2025 report. Norway is seeing more cancer cases overall, but the reasons differ greatly from one cancer type to another.
Skin Cancer Continues to Rise
Skin cancer is one of the clearest areas of concern in the new figures.
Non-melanoma skin cancer is now the second most common cancer among men in Norway, behind only prostate cancer. In 2025, there were 1,931 new cases among men and 1,665 among women. Melanoma also remains common, with 1,573 new cases among men and 1,524 among women.
The report says melanoma incidence rates have increased sharply for both sexes in recent decades. This increase is thought to be largely linked to sun exposure habits, including the use of tanning beds.
However, the report also notes that greater public awareness, more attention from primary care doctors and changes in diagnostic criteria may have contributed to the rise in recorded cases.
One particularly striking detail is that Norway ranks second globally in melanoma mortality rates. That does not mean most people diagnosed with melanoma die from it. In fact, five-year relative survival is now above 90% for men and above 95% for women.
Most patients are diagnosed at a localised stage, and newer treatments such as immunotherapy and targeted therapy have also improved outcomes for metastatic disease.
Non-melanoma skin cancer has also risen sharply over recent decades. Among men, its rate has exceeded those of bladder, colon and lung cancer in the past decade, making it one of the most common cancers in the country. Fortunately, survival remains high and mortality is very low.
For Norway, the skin cancer figures are a reminder that prevention is not only a summer holiday issue. Sunburn, tanning habits and long-term UV exposure all matter, even in a northern country better known for winter darkness than intense sunshine.
Breast Cancer Is Rising Across Age Groups
Breast cancer remains the most common cancer among women in Norway. In 2025, 4,498 new cases were reported.
The longer-term trend is also notable. The age-standardised incidence rate for breast cancer in 2021–2025 was 10.5% higher than in 2016–2020.
Breast cancer has been the most common cancer among women since cancer registration began in Norway. The national mammography screening programme, BreastScreen Norway, began as a pilot project in 1996 and became nationwide by 2005. It invites women aged 50 to 69 for mammography every two years.
The report says the introduction of screening explains much of the increase in incidence from the mid-1990s to 2005. But more recent numbers point to a new increase across all age groups, with the largest increases seen outside the age range covered by the screening programme.
Several explanations are possible. The report points to more sensitive diagnostic methods, mammography taking place outside the organised screening programme, changes in lifestyle and reproductive patterns, and increased use of menopausal hormone therapy.
The report also notes the unusual impact of the pandemic years. Breast cancer incidence fell sharply in 2020, most likely because screening activities were paused for several months when much of society closed down to limit the spread of COVID-19. Incidence then rose sharply in 2021 and 2022.
In 2025, rates are again showing a significant increase. That makes breast cancer one of the most important trends to watch in future reports.
Cervical Cancer Reaches a Record Low
One of the most encouraging findings in the 2025 report is the continued decline in cervical cancer.
The incidence rate for cervical cancer is now at the lowest level ever recorded in Norway. Comparing 2021–2025 with 2016–2020, the rate fell by 21.1%.
This is a major public health success story. The decline reflects several decades of work, including the identification and treatment of pre-cancerous cell changes, organised screening and HPV vaccination.
Norway introduced HPV vaccination for girls in 2009 and later extended it to boys in 2018. The cervical screening programme has also changed over time, including a transition from cytology-based screening to primary HPV testing.
The result is especially visible among younger women. The report points to a particularly large reduction in cervical cancer among women under 30, which is the group most directly affected by HPV vaccination.
This does not mean cervical cancer has disappeared, and screening remains important. But the figures show what long-term prevention can achieve when vaccination and screening work together.
Lung Cancer Is Falling But Remains the Deadliest Cancer
Lung cancer presents one of the clearest examples of progress and continuing danger at the same time.
In 2025, there were 1,659 new lung cancer cases among men and 1,746 among women. It remains one of the most common cancers in both sexes.
The trend, however, is improving. Comparing 2021–2025 with 2016–2020, the age-standardised lung cancer rate fell by 10.8% among men and 4.7% among women.
This reflects the long shadow of smoking habits. The report notes that lung cancer incidence and mortality trends differ between men and women because the smoking epidemic reached its peak at different times.
Among men, lung cancer incidence and mortality peaked in the early 2000s and have declined since. Among women, incidence peaked later, around 2018, and has since declined, although rates are still increasing among women aged 80 and older.
Despite falling incidence rates, lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death in Norway. In 2025, lung cancer accounted for 18.3% of all cancer-related deaths.
Survival has improved, but it remains low compared with many other cancers. The five-year relative survival rate for lung cancer has risen to 28.8% for men and 36.5% for women. The report links the improvement partly to better treatment, including targeted therapy and immunotherapy.
That makes lung cancer one of Norway’s most important cancer challenges: fewer people are being diagnosed relative to the age structure of the population, but the disease still causes more cancer deaths than any other.
Prostate Cancer Remains the Most Common Cancer Among Men
Prostate cancer remains by far the most common cancer among men in Norway. In 2025, 5,340 new cases were reported. Even so, the age-standardised incidence rate has fallen. Comparing 2021–2025 with 2016–2020, prostate cancer rates were down 8.0%.
The history of prostate cancer statistics is closely linked with PSA testing. The report notes that general PSA screening is not recommended in Norway, but increased PSA testing from the 1990s onwards contributed to higher recorded incidence and improved survival figures for many years.
Since peaking in the early 2010s, prostate cancer incidence has fallen. Mortality has also declined over the longer term.
Survival is high. Five-year relative survival for prostate cancer increased from 95.6% in 2016–2020 to 96.5% in 2021–2025.
That high survival figure is encouraging, but it also illustrates the complexity of cancer statistics. Screening, testing intensity, early diagnosis and treatment decisions all influence the numbers.
Survival Rates Continue to Improve
Perhaps the most encouraging long-term message from the 2025 report is that cancer survival continues to improve.
For all cancer types combined, five-year relative survival is now 78.2% for both men and women. In simple terms, the report describes this as nearly eight out of ten cancer patients surviving their cancer disease for five years or more.
There is, however, enormous variation between cancer types. Five-year relative survival is close to 100% for testicular cancer, while it remains below 10% for pancreatic cancer when neuroendocrine neoplasms are excluded.
Some of the most common cancers have seen steady gains. Breast cancer survival increased from 92.2% in 2016–2020 to 92.9% in 2021–2025. Prostate cancer survival increased from 95.6% to 96.5%. Colon cancer survival rose modestly for both men and women.
The improvement in lung cancer is especially important. Five-year relative survival rose from 25.0% to 28.8% among men and from 31.5% to 36.5% among women.
Melanoma survival has also improved, reaching 92.5% among men and 96.3% among women.
These improvements reflect several changes happening at once: earlier diagnosis, better treatment, more targeted therapies and more personalised cancer care. But the large differences between cancer types show why survival statistics must always be read with care.
More People Are Living After Cancer
At the end of 2025, 359,257 people in Norway were alive after having had at least one cancer diagnosis at some point in their lives. That is an increase of more than 11,000 people compared with the previous year.
This is partly a positive story. More people are surviving cancer, and many are living for years or decades after diagnosis.
But it also creates new challenges for the healthcare system. Cancer care does not end when treatment is completed. Many people live with late effects, follow-up appointments, uncertainty, reduced energy, anxiety about recurrence, or long-term consequences of surgery, radiation or systemic treatment.
As cancer survival improves, Norway will need to focus not only on diagnosis and treatment, but also on life after cancer.
That includes rehabilitation, mental health, support for returning to work, and care for people living with advanced or metastatic disease.
A Personal and Public Challenge
The Cancer in Norway 2025 report presents a complex picture.
The total number of cancer cases has reached a new high, passing 40,000 in a single year for the first time. Skin cancer and breast cancer are rising, and lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death.
At the same time, the overall age-standardised rate has fallen among men, cervical cancer has reached a record low, lung cancer rates are declining, and survival continues to improve.
The figures show the impact of decades of prevention, screening, research and better treatment. They also show why continued investment is needed.
Cancer is not just a set of statistics. Behind every number is a person, a family, a workplace and a community affected by diagnosis, treatment and recovery.
Norway’s challenge now is not only to treat cancer more effectively, but to prevent more avoidable cases, detect disease earlier, and support the growing number of people living with and after cancer.
The full Cancer in Norway 2025 report is published by the Cancer Registry of Norway and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. It is available online for anyone wishing to explore the data in more detail.
