Brain Tumor Histology and Incidence in Adolescents and Young Adults

Malignant brain tumors are the most common cause of cancer deaths in adolescents and young adults aged 15-39, and are the most common cancer occurring in 15-19 year-olds.

The latest statistics from the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States were published in Neuro-Oncology.

The report, which includes data from 2008-2012, is the first to provide statistical analysis of brain and central nervous system (CNS) tumors in adolescents and young adults.

“When analyzing data in 5-year age increments, researchers discovered that the adolescent and young adult population is not one group but rather several distinct groups that are impacted by very different tumor types as they move into adulthood,” Elizabeth Wilson, president and CEO of the American Brain Tumor Association, said in a statement.

Statistics are provided on tumor type, location, and age group (15-19, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, and 35-39) for malignant and non-malignant brain and CNS tumors.

Notably, data indicate that of the 1.5% of people who will be diagnosed with cancer between ages 15 and 39, 0.07% will develop a malignant brain tumor. Some 10 600 brain and CNS tumors are diagnosed in adolescents and young adults (15-39 years) per year — the third most common type of cancer occurring in this age group — causing approximately 450 deaths annually. As age progresses, commonality of primary brain and CNS tumors drops: it is the most common type of cancer occurring in those aged 15-19 years; second most common in those aged 20-24 years; third most common in those aged 25-29 years; and fourth most common in those aged 30-34 years.

Between 2008 and 2012, 53 083 primary brain and CNS tumors were diagnosed in adolescents and young adults in the US, resulting in a total annual age-adjusted incidence of 10.43 per 100 000 population. They are the third most common cause of cancer death in this age group, behind only breast cancer and colorectal cancer.