Belgium records highest number of new cancer diagnoses in 2024

Belgium's cancer register reported 78,697 new cancer diagnoses in 2024, a 1.4 % increase over the previous year and the highest figure on record. Men accounted for 54.3 % of cases. Regional trends varied: Brussels saw a slight 0.6 % decline, while Wallonia rose 2.1 % and Flanders 1.3 %.

The most common malignant tumours remained unchanged. In men, prostate, lung and colorectal cancers were most frequent; in women, breast cancer led, followed by lung and colorectal. Specific trends included a stabilisation or slight decline in prostate cancer incidence, stable overall breast‑cancer rates but a drop among women aged 50‑69 and a rise in those over 70, and a divergent lung‑cancer pattern—decreasing among men and increasing among women. Other cancers showing upward trends were pancreatic, liver, testicular, central‑nervous‑system tumours and non‑melanoma skin cancers, while bladder, stomach, uterine and ovarian cancers fell.

These figures provide essential data for public‑health policy and future screening initiatives in Belgium.