The American Cancer Society 2025 Facts and Figures report contained alarming information about cancer rates in young women. Women under 50 are getting cancer more frequently than men of the same age. In 2022, for every young man who got cancer, about 1.5 young women did. Now that number is closer to 1.8.
The cause of this trend is not clear. It is complex and varies depending on the type of cancer.
What cancers are rising in young women?
The following cancers are all on the rise in women under 65:
Young-onset colorectal cancer is on the rise for both young men and young women under age 50.
Learn more about rising rates of cancer in young people and how to manage your risk.
What are some possible causes of the rise in cancer rates in young women?
There are many possible factors, and each form of cancer has its own risks and influences.
- Learn more about rising rates of lung cancer among non-smoking women.
- Learn more about obesity and cancer risk.
- Learn more about alcohol use and breast cancer risk.
- Learn more about ultraprocessed foods and cancer risk.
- Learn more about rising rates of pancreatic cancer.
Another possible contributor to rising cancer rates is environmental exposures that have increased in recent decades. Younger people may have been exposed to environmental changes that weren’t present earlier, or that are steadily increasing, such as microplastics.
- Learn more about microplastics and cancer risk.
What can I do to reduce my risk of cancer?
While cancer risk cannot be entirely eliminated, it can be reduced by focusing on the risk factors you can control and making attainable changes that improve your health in general.
“Following a healthy diet and lifestyle is very important,” says Kimmie Ng, MD, MPH, director of the Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer Center. “But it is also important to stay aware and attuned to symptoms and to seek prompt medical attention if you see any alarming changes.”
Tips include:
- Avoid tobacco in any form. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend the START method for quitting smoking or chewing tobacco.
- Stay physically fit and maintain a healthy weight for you. Experts recommend tailoring your fitness routine to your own abilities.
- Eat a healthy, diet of whole foods including fruits, vegetables, beans, grains, and lean meats. Avoid ultraprocessed foods such as deli meats, sodas, and fast foods.
- Avoid excessive sunlight exposure, particularly if you freckle or burn easily.
- Get vaccinated and practice safe sex to mitigate risk of infections that contribute to cancer, including hepatitis viruses, HIV, and the human papillomavirus (HPV). Get vaccinated against HPV and HBV (the hepatitis B virus). All these viruses can be transmitted by unprotected sex or needle sharing.
- If you drink alcohol, limit yourself to an average of one to three drinks per week.
What else can I do? Is screening helpful?
Screening is essential for early detection and intervention when the disease can be treated more effectively. Follow the guidelines and pay attention to guideline changes. Breast cancer screening guidelines changed recently to recommend that screening begin at younger ages as rates of breast cancer in younger people have risen.
In addition, pay attention to your family history of cancer. Genetic counseling and testing for inherited risk genes can help you identify an increased risk of some cancers. People with inherited risks also may qualify for earlier screening.
Learn more about breast cancer screening.
Learn more about prostate cancer screening.
Learn more about cervical cancer screening and prevention.
Learn more about colorectal cancer screening.
About the Medical Reviewer
Dr. Kimmie Ng is Associate Chief of the Division of Gastrointestinal Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA. She serves as the Founding Director of the Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer Center, one of the first of its kind in the country, and Co-Director of the Colon and Rectal Cancer Center at Dana-Farber. Her research focuses on identifying dietary, plasma, and molecular predictors of improved survival in patients with colorectal cancer, with a special interest in the vitamin D pathway, the microbiome, and young-onset colorectal cancer. She is the recipient of numerous NIH, foundation, and industry grants to support this work. She chaired the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Scientific Program Committee for the 2023 Annual Meeting and currently serves as a member of ASCO's Nominating Committee. She was appointed an Associate Editor of JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) in February 2024. She has been featured in multiple national media outlets, including the TODAY Show, ABC News, The New York Times, CNN, and The Washington Post, to raise awareness of young-onset colorectal cancer and the importance of cancer screening.
Dr. Ng's clinical practice involves the care of patients with all types of gastrointestinal cancers. She leads and participates in multidisciplinary translational research projects with academic and industry collaborators. She is also involved in the design and conduct of clinical trials and has served as Principal Investigator of several national multi-center randomized trials.
Dr. Ng obtained her Bachelor of Science degree with Distinction from Yale University and her Doctor of Medicine degree from University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. She completed her residency in internal medicine at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and a medical oncology fellowship at Dana-Farber/Partners CancerCare. She subsequently received a Master of Public Health degree from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.