Epidemiology

Testicular cancer is rare, accounting for only 0.4% of all incident cancers and <0.1% of all cancer deaths in males worldwide.[11] However, among men aged 15 to 44 years, these tumours are the most common cancer diagnosed.[12]​ In the US, incidence peaks at 20 to 34 years of age (around 50% of cases); the median age at diagnosis is 33 years.[13] Incidence rates vary worldwide and are highest in Northern European countries and lowest in Asian and African countries.[12] In one European study, the average annual testicular cancer rate was 7.32 per 100,000 men.[14] In the UK there are around 2400 new cases each year, with the highest incidence in those aged 30 to 35 years.[15]​ It is estimated that there were 9760 new cases of testis cancer and 500 men died of this disease in 2024 in the US.[13]

Over the past 40 years, there has been an age-dependent increase in the incidence of this disease in the US, particularly for seminomas.[13][16]​​​​​​​ The increasing incidence rate of testicular cancer suggests a contribution from environmental and lifestyle factors, including socioeconomic indices, alcohol use, physical inactivity, and obesity.[17]​​​​ White men have, the highest incidence compared with men of African and Asian descent. In the US, testicular cancer incidence in white men is four times that in black men.[18]​ However, incidence rates for different ethnic groups can differ markedly within the same country, even when these ethnic groups share many demographic and environmental characteristics.[16]

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