Anal cancer rates quadruple among UK women in past 40 years

The rate of anal cancer in women has risen steeply since the mid-1970s, from 0.4 per 100 000 to 1.8 per 100  000 in 2009-11, according to new UK figures.1 Cancer Research UK’s figures show that cases of anal cancer in men have also risen, from 0.4 per 100 000 in 1975-77 to 1.2 per 100 000 in 2009-11.

In 2011 there were 1175 new cases of anal cancer in the United Kingdom: 414 in men and 761 in women, giving a male:female ratio …