How common is prostate cancer?

In the U.S., about one-half of all men will develop some type of cancer during their lifetimes. Skin cancer is the most common, but prostate cancer is second. It is the second leading cause of cancer death in men, exceeded only by lung cancer. Prostate cancer accounts for about one out of every eight cancer-related deaths in men. The American Cancer Society estimates that in 1999 about 179,300 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed, and about 37,000 men will die of the disease in the U.S. About 1 in every 5 or 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetimes. But autopsy studies show that many more men actually have microscopic levels of the disease that are never detected. This number is not known for sure but is estimated to be about 30 out of every 100 men in their 50s, increasing with each subsequent decade. About 80 of every 100 men who live into their 80s are thought to have some cancer cells in their prostate, but seldom are they found or do they cause problems. Only about 3 in every 100 men actually die from prostate cancer.