Aotearoa New Zealand has one of the highest incidence rates of breast cancer in the world.
Breast cancer has a devastating impact on women and their families throughout New Zealand across all ages and social groups, both male and female.
The facts.
Breast cancer affects one in nine New Zealand women over their lifetime.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer for Kiwi women.
One woman every three hours will be diagnosed.
Nearly two women each day will die from the disease.
Breast cancer is the biggest cause of death for New Zealand women under 65 years of age.
Mortality of breast cancer is 20% higher in New Zealand than in Australia.
New Zealand has the 8th highest incidence of breast cancer in the world.
Women over 50 are at most risk.
Around 11% of breast cancers occur in women between the age of 25 to 44.
After adjusting for age, wāhine Māori and Pacific women have earlier onset and worse outcomes than European New Zealand women.
6% of breast cancer in New Zealand occurs under the age of 40 years.
About 25 men are diagnosed in New Zealand each year.
“As a population, we are not all the same – curing breast cancer will see research increasingly focus on individual variations to progressively improve outcomes across the cancer pathway. This will ensure all New Zealanders benefit through earlier diagnosis, more precise treatment and improved monitoring and care. Progress is being made - more needs to be done - your continuing support is needed.”
What is Breast Cancer Cure doing?
We support research into finding a cure for breast cancer by making the disease one that women can endure and survive by funding novel research into prevention, earlier and more accurate diagnosis, appropriate and tailored treatment and broadening the knowledge base around breast cancer and treatment with a focus on the 17% with poorer outcomes and the 30% with recurrent or metastatic cancer.
27 years funding breast cancer research.
57 research projects enabled.
$11million + in research grants funded by Breast Cancer Cure.