The world observed World Cancer Day on Wednesday, but the fight for awareness is not over and cancer remains a reality for over 100,000 people living with cancer. 

As attention each year focuses on highly visible cancers such as breast and prostate, less-recognised and deadly cancers remains in the shadows, silently taking lives and receiving far less public awareness and research attention.

According to global cancer data and PubMed, while breast and prostate cancers dominate public campaigns and stay in the spotlight,  rare and less common cancers together represent more than a quarter of all new cancer cases and nearly 30 % of cancer deaths worldwide in 2022.

One of the most overlooked yet lethal cancers is pancreatic cancer, which accounts for a small proportion of all cancer cases, approximately 3 %. But while it seems like a small number, this cancer is disproportionately deadly and responsible for about 7 % of cancer deaths globally.

With symptoms that are often vague and diagnosis occurring late, survival rates remain low, and effective population-level screening does not yet exist. 

What makes matters worse is that pancreatic cancer’s concealed location and lack of early symptoms contribute to poor outcomes and public understanding. 

At the same time, rare cancers made up about 26.7 % of all new cancer diagnoses and roughly 30% of all cancer-related deaths globally in 2022, according to a PMC report. These include conditions such as bladder cancer, leukaemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, oesophagal cancer, and brain cancer. Many of these patients suffer from delayed diagnosis, limited treatment options, and minimal public discourse. 

Another under-reported condition is Cancer of Unknown Primary (CUP). This is where the metastatic disease is detected first but doctors cannot locate the original tumour site.

This category accounts for an estimated 2–15 cases per 100,000 people, often with poor prognosis, and receives little attention compared with more familiar cancers. 

According to the latest CANSA’S National Cancer registry report, there are several noteworthy rare Cancers.  Kaposi Sarcoma remains a burden, particularly among Black males, where it appears in the top ten listed cancers. The report includes frequency tables for children (0-14 years). For example, Leukaemia and Brain/CNS tumours appear frequently in the 0–4 age brackets across several demographics.

It’s also worth noting that the above figures on Kaposi Sarcoma and childhood cancers are based on pathologically diagnosed cancers reported to the registry. The actual number of cases may be higher due to cancers diagnosed clinically (without a biopsy) or in areas with limited access to laboratory services.

Several factors contribute to lesser public awareness around these cancers:

Many silent or rare cancers present nonspecific symptoms that can easily be mistaken for benign conditions, leading to delayed diagnosis.

Furthermore, because rare cancers each affect relatively few people, they rarely get the spotlight in awareness campaigns despite collectively representing a large burden.

For cancers like pancreatic and CUP, no reliable early screening tools exist, reducing opportunities for early detection messaging.

South Africa’s cancer landscape, much like the global picture, is dominated in public discussion by breast, cervical, and prostate cancers. And it is important to pay attention and be aware of these “common cancers”, the rare and silent cancers go unnoticed, and patients can miss early-warning cues and support systems that might improve outcomes. 

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