# Cancer incidence trends in young adults in Spain, 1993 to 2018, from the Spanish Network of Cancer Registries (REDECAN)

Source: https://onco.cc/key-papers/paper-redecan-young-adults-ejc-2026/  
OnCo record `paper-redecan-young-adults-ejc-2026` (Key paper). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Fifteen Spanish cancer registries looked at cancers in adults aged 20 to 49 from 1993 to 2018: smoking-related cancers fell sharply, while some obesity-related cancers rose in people under 40.

## Summary

Published as "Is cancer increasing in young adults in Spain? Incidence trends from the Spanish Network of Cancer Registries (REDECAN)". A population-based study within REDECAN using data from 15 cancer registries included every new cancer diagnosed in people aged 20 to 49 between 1993 and 2018, 153,599 cases, 58% of them in women. Truncated age-standardised incidence rates were calculated with the European standard population and trends assessed with Joinpoint regression to estimate the annual percent change. A corrigendum was published in September 2026 (DOI 10.1016/j.ejca.2026.116950).

## Fields

- Kind: Key paper
- Last checked: 2026-11-03
- Journal: European Journal of Cancer
- Year: 2026
- DOI: 10.1016/j.ejca.2026.116883
- Authors: Redondo-Sánchez D, Petrova D, Bigorra J, et al.
- Findings: Incidence rose for kidney (annual percent change 2.5%), thyroid (4.0%) and Hodgkin lymphoma (1.1%) in men, and for pancreas (2.0%), Hodgkin (2.1%) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (1.7%) in women.; Several digestive cancers (stomach, colon, rectum), breast and cervical cancers increased significantly among adults under 40.; Incidence fell for larynx, lung, urinary bladder and liver cancers in both sexes, with annual percent changes between -3.1% and -8.7%, and for lip, oral cavity and pharynx cancers in men.
- What it means: Spain's registries see the same early-onset signal reported elsewhere, but not across the board: in young adults smoking-related cancers have fallen while some obesity-associated cancers have risen, which points prevention at weight and diet as well as tobacco.
- Caveats: Registries cover part of Spain, not the whole country, and the series ends in 2018.; Annual percent changes describe relative trends; absolute numbers of cancers in young adults remain small for most sites. A corrigendum has been published.

## Sources

- Eur J Cancer 2026: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejca.2026.116883
- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42314360/
- Corrigendum, Eur J Cancer 2026: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejca.2026.116950

## Connected records

- cancers: [Colorectal cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/colorectal/)
- institutions: [Spanish Network of Cancer Registries (REDECAN)](https://onco.cc/institutions/redecan/)

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