Young women are almost twice as likely to be diagnosed with cancer as young men: ‘We’re seeing a change’

Cancer diagnoses are shifting from older to younger adults and from men to women, according to a report released Thursday by the American Cancer Society.

Charmella Roark remembers the shock that stopped her in her tracks when she learned about her younger sister’s cancer diagnosis. In 2018, Kiki Roark wrote in their family’s group text that she had been diagnosed with stage I breast cancer – the same disease that had taken their aunt’s life just a few years prior. “I was in disbelief,” Charmella said of her sister’s diagnosis. “That’s my first best friend.” The New Jersey sisters never would have guessed that four years later, Charmella would receive the same diagnosis. The Roark sisters represent an ongoing trend emerging in the United States: More younger women are being diagnosed with cancer. Cancer rates have generally declined among men in the US early this century before leveling out, yet they appear to be climbing among women – especially young women. Cancer diagnoses are shifting from older to younger adults and from men to women, according to a report released Thursday by the American Cancer Society.