Cancer is a devastating diagnosis received by about 1300 Northlanders each year. Northern Advocate health reporter Denise Piper investigates cancer patients fundraising for better treatment, how Northland compares with the rest of the country and what is being done to improve cancer treatment in the region. Here, she takes a look at our cancer rates, and how they compare.
Northland’s rates of cancer diagnoses and deaths are among the highest in the country, and the reason why is unclear. The latest data from Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora shows in 2021, Te Tai Tokerau had 366 cancer registrations, or new diagnoses, per 100,000 people - the third-highest rate in the country . In the same year, Northland had a cancer death rate of 129 per 100,000 people, the fourth-highest rate in the country.
The north also has high numbers of diagnoses and deaths for certain cancers: bladder, breast, cervix and lung..