(MENAFN) According to recent research, the growing number of cancer cases detected in U.S. adults under the age of 50 may be less about an actual surge in disease and more about improvements in medical screening and earlier detection.

The findings, published in a medical journal on Monday, noted that cancers such as thyroid, kidney, small intestine, colorectum, endometrium, pancreas, and myeloma have seen their reported rates more than double since 1992. However, much of this rise is believed to stem from intensified diagnostic practices and instances of overdiagnosis rather than a genuine increase in life-threatening cases.

The report emphasized that cancers like thyroid and kidney are well-documented examples of overdiagnosis, while in other cancer types, earlier detection helps explain the data—particularly as death rates have not risen alongside the higher diagnosis numbers.

“While not among the fastest growing (0.6% per year), breast cancer remains the most common early-onset cancer, and despite rising diagnoses in women younger than 50 years, mortality has decreased by approximately half,” the study said.

The authors concluded that the trend in early-onset cancer “does not consistently signal a rise in the occurrence of clinically meaningful cancer.”

Although some increases may represent real growth in certain cancers, researchers suggest this effect is relatively modest and appears confined to only a handful of cancer types.

MENAFN01102025000045017281ID1110136051