Cases of cancer diagnosed in Western Trust rose by 5.7 per cent to 1,755

New figures from the Queen’s University NI Cancer Registry (NICR) show the Western Trust recorded the biggest increase in cancer diagnoses of any health authority over the period.

The registry analysed cancer cases diagnosed over the months April to December during the years 2018 to 2021.

Researchers found there was a 13.5 per cent decrease in diagnoses from 1,661 per year in 2018/2019 to 1,437 in 2020 in the Western Trust.

But the number of cases rose sharply again - by 22 per cent - from 1,437 cases in 2020 to 1,755 cases in 2021. This resulted in a 5.7 per cent increase over the 2018/19 to 2021 period.

The Western Trust was one of only two health authorities where cases increased. The other was the Southern Trust (2.2 per cent).

The Western Trust still accounted for the lowest percentage of cases in the North with 16.4 per cent (1,755 cases out of 10,706) in 2021. However, the percentage share has risen.

For example, in 2018/19 the Western Trust accounted for 15.3 per cent of all cases in the North (1,661 cases out of 10,881).

The registry provided a breakdown of cases of cancer, excluding non-melanoma skin cancer, that were diagnosed in 2017-2021 by Health and Social Care Trust.

There were 7,997 cases in total with an average of 1,599 every year in the Western Trust; men accounted for 4,136 cases (827 per year on average) and women accounted for 3,861 cases (an annual average of 772).

Nearly 8,000 cases of cancer diagnosed in Western Trust in five years