Lung cancer (C33–C34)
In 2009–2013, 945 new cases of lung cancer were diagnosed in Indigenous Australians—an average of 189 cases per year. In 2011–2015, 705 Indigenous Australians died from lung cancer—an average of 141 deaths per year.
In 2007–2014, Indigenous Australians diagnosed with lung cancer had an 11% chance, on average, of surviving for five years compared with their counterparts in the Indigenous population. Non-Indigenous Australians diagnosed with lung cancer had a 16% chance, on average, of surviving for five years compared with their counterparts in the non-Indigenous population.
Sex
More Indigenous males than females were diagnosed with and died from lung cancer. Five-year relative survival was similar for Indigenous males and females.
Explore the data below for information on incidence (2009–2013), mortality (2011–2015) and relative survival (2007–2014) by sex and Indigenous status.
Life stage
For both Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, the age-specific incidence and mortality rates for lung cancer increased with increasing life stage.
Due to small numbers, one-year relative survival is presented in text by life stage. For Indigenous Australians, one-year relative survival was consistently low across available life stages. One-year relative survival for non-Indigenous Australians decreased with each life stage.
Explore the data below for information on incidence (2009–2013), mortality (2011–2015) and relative survival (2007–2014) by sex, Indigenous status and life stage.
Trend
For Indigenous Australians, the age-standardised incidence and mortality rates for lung cancer have increased over time. Estimated trend lines indicate a significant increase in the lung cancer incidence and mortality rates over time.
For non-Indigenous Australians, the age-standardised incidence rate for lung cancer has been relatively stable, while the mortality rate has fallen. Estimated trend lines indicate a significant decrease in the lung cancer mortality rate for non-Indigenous Australians. No statistically significant increasing or decreasing trend was observed in the lung cancer incidence rate for non-Indigenous Australians from 1998 to 2013.
Data for individual years have been presented for trend figures to demonstrate the variation in rates from year to year. Estimated trend lines have been applied to figures based on a least-squares regression equation where trends were found to be statistically significant. Differences between the rates for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians may be related to a range of factors including differences between the two populations in the prevalence of risk and/or protective factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, access to health-care services and uptake of screening and diagnostics testing.
Explore the data below for information on incidence and mortality by sex, Indigenous status and year.
State and territory
For the jurisdictions for which data were available (see Summary or Notes section for details), the age-standardised incidence rate for lung cancer ranged from 70 new cases per 100,000 to 92 per 100,000 for Indigenous Australians. For non-Indigenous Australians, the incidence rate ranged from 37 per 100,000 to 49 per 100,000.
For the jurisdictions for which data were available (see Summary or Notes section for details), the age-standardised mortality rate for lung cancer ranged from 46 deaths per 100,000 to 74 per 100,000 for Indigenous Australians. For non-Indigenous Australians, the mortality rate ranged from 30 per 100,000 to 38 per 100,000.
Observed differences may be due to differences in population characteristics, for example, Indigenous Australians are more likely to live in remote areas of Australia than non-Indigenous people.
Explore the data below for information on incidence (2009–2013) and mortality (2011–2015) by sex, Indigenous status and state and territory.
Remoteness area
For Indigenous Australians, the age-standardised incidence rate for lung cancer ranged from 65 per 100,000 to 82 per 100,000 across remoteness areas. The age-standardised mortality rate for lung cancer ranged from 40 per 100,000 to 62 per 100,000 across remoteness areas.
For non-Indigenous Australians, the age-standardised incidence rate for lung cancer ranged from 33 per 100,000 to 44 per 100,000 across remoteness areas. The age-standardised mortality rate for lung cancer ranged from 24 per 100,000 to 30 per 100,000 across remoteness areas.
Explore the data below for information on incidence (2009–2013) and mortality (2011–2015) by sex, Indigenous status and remoteness area.
