National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre (NBOCC)

All statistics are sourced from Ovarian Cancer in Australia: an overview, 2010¹ unless otherwise indicated

Incidence

• Ovarian cancer is the 9th most common cancer diagnosed in Australian women, and the second most commonly diagnosed gynaecological cancer.
• The number of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer in Australia increased from 833 in 1982 to 1,226 in 2006.
• An estimated 1,488 women are expected to be diagnosed with ovarian cancer in Australian in 2015.²
• One in 77 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer before the age of 85.
• The risk of ovarian cancer increases with age. About 81% of all new cases of ovarian cancer diagnosed in 2006 were in women 50 years or older.
• The average age of first diagnosis is 63 years.
• The age-standardised incidence rate of ovarian cancer has decreased significantly. In 1982 the incidence rate was 12.4 compared with 10.7 in 2006.

Mortality

• Ovarian cancer is the 6th most common cause of cancer death in Australian women.
• A total of 795 women died from ovarian cancer in Australia in 2006.
• The age-standardised mortality rate of ovarian cancer has decreased from 8.6 per 100,000 in 1982 to 6.7 deaths per 100,000 in 2006.
• A woman’s risk of dying from ovarian cancer before the age of 85 has been declining, from 1 in 89 risk in 1982 to a 1 in 108 risk in 2006.

Survival

• The five year relative survival rate for Australian women with ovarian cancer has increased significantly, from 33% in 1982-1987 to 40% in 2000-2006.

Prevalence

• It is estimated that in 2006 there were 8,216 women alive who had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the previous 25 years.

Burden of disease

• Ovarian cancer was the 25^th leading cause of burden of disease for females, accounting for 11,994 DALYs (10,946 years of life lost and 1,048 years of life lost due to disability) in 2003.

¹ Australian Institute of Health and Welfare & National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre 2010. Ovarian Cancer in Australia: an overview, 2010. Cancer series no. 52. Cat. no. 48. Canberra: AIHW.

² Projected data is sourced from Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2010. Gynaecological cancer projections 2010-2015. Cancer series no. 53. Cat. no. CAN 49. Canberra AIHW.