Kinds of Cancer

CDC provides basic information and statistics about some of the most common cancers in the United States.

Bladder Cancer

Bladder cancer risk factors include smoking, genetic mutations, and exposure to certain chemicals.

Breast Cancer

Getting mammograms regularly can lower the risk of dying from breast cancer. Talk to your doctor about when to start and how often to get a screening mammogram.

Cervical Cancer

Cervical cancer is highly preventable in most Western countries because screening tests and a vaccine to prevent human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are available.

Colorectal Cancer

If you are 50 years old or older, get screened. Screening tests can help prevent colorectal cancer or find it early, when treatment works best.

Gynecologic Cancers

Five main types of cancer affect a woman’s reproductive organs: cervical, ovarian, uterine, vaginal, and vulvar. As a group, they are referred to as gynecologic cancers.

Head and Neck Cancers

Cancers of the head and neck include cancers that start in several places in the head and throat, not including brain cancers or cancers of the eye.

Kidney Cancer

Smoking is the most important risk factor for kidney and renal pelvis cancers. To lower your risk, don’t smoke, or quit if you do.

Liver Cancer

To lower your risk for liver cancer, get vaccinated against Hepatitis B, get tested for Hepatitis C, and avoid drinking too much alcohol.

Lung Cancer

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States. The most important thing you can do to lower your lung cancer risk is to quit smoking and avoid secondhand smoke.

Lymphoma

Lymphoma is a general term for cancers that start in the lymph system. The two main kinds of lymphoma are Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Myeloma

Myeloma is a cancer of the plasma cells. In myeloma, the cells grow too much, forming a mass or tumor in the bone marrow.

Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer causes more deaths than any other cancer of the female reproductive system. But when ovarian cancer is found early, treatment works best.

Prostate Cancer

Most prostate cancers grow slowly and don’t cause any health problems in men who have them. Learn more and talk to your doctor before you decide to get tested or treated for prostate cancer.

Skin Cancer

Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States. To lower your skin cancer risk, protect your skin from the sun and avoid indoor tanning.

Thyroid Cancer

To lower the risk of thyroid cancer, avoid unnecessary exposure to radiation, including radiation from medical imaging procedures, especially in young children and around the head and neck.