Ovarian Cancer in the US 2026
Ovarian cancer is the deadliest gynaecologic cancer in the United States, with a mortality burden more resistant to change than nearly any other common cancer. According to ACS Cancer Facts & Figures 2026, an estimated 21,010 women will be diagnosed in 2026 and an estimated 12,450 will die — a death-to-diagnosis ratio of approximately 59%, among the highest for any tracked cancer. Ovarian cancer represents approximately 1.1% of all female cancer diagnoses but accounts for ~4.9% of all female cancer deaths — roughly four times its prevalence. 1 in 91 women will develop ovarian cancer in their lifetime and 1 in 143 will die from it, according to ACS 2026. As of 2023, approximately 254,621 women were alive following an ovarian cancer diagnosis, including those in remission or considered cured, per the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance (OCRA) citing NCI SEER’s 2025 data.
The broader trend is one of slow but measurable progress against an unsolved underlying problem. The AAMR fell from 14.62 per 100,000 in 1999 to 9.52 in 2023 — a 35% decline over 24 years (CDC WONDER, 2025) — driven by improved surgery, better platinum-based chemotherapy, and the introduction of PARP inhibitors in maintenance therapy for BRCA-mutated and HRD tumours. What has not changed is the fundamental problem: only approximately 23% of ovarian cancers are caught at Stage I, when the 5-year survival rate is 89–93%. The remaining 77% are diagnosed at regional or distant stage (survival: 72% and 31% respectively). There is still no validated population-level screening test. The disease’s ability to grow silently for years, producing only non-specific symptoms when already spread, remains the defining clinical challenge that no pharmacological breakthrough has yet resolved.
Interesting Facts: Ovarian Cancer Statistics in the US 2026
| Fact | Figure |
|---|---|
| Estimated new ovarian cancer diagnoses in 2026 (ACS) | 21,010 |
| Estimated ovarian cancer deaths in 2026 (ACS) | 12,450 |
| New diagnoses in 2025 (ACS Cancer Facts & Figures 2025) | 20,890 |
| Deaths in 2025 (ACS) | 12,730 |
| Rate of new cases per 100,000 women (2019–2023, SEER) | 10.4 per 100,000 |
| Death rate per 100,000 women (2020–2024, SEER) | 5.7 per 100,000 |
| Lifetime risk of developing ovarian cancer | 1 in 91 women |
| Lifetime risk of dying from ovarian cancer | 1 in 143 women |
| Women alive following ovarian cancer diagnosis (2023, NCI SEER) | 254,621 |
| Age-adjusted mortality rate (AAMR) in 1999 | 14.62 per 100,000 |
| Age-adjusted mortality rate (AAMR) in 2023 | 9.52 per 100,000 (−35% over 24 years) |
| Ovarian cancer ranking: cancer diagnoses among women | 11th most common |
| Ovarian cancer ranking: cancer deaths among women | 5th leading cause |
| Ovarian cancer as % of all female cancer diagnoses | ~1.1% |
| Ovarian cancer as % of all female cancer deaths | ~4.9% |
| Median age at diagnosis | ~63 years |
| Women diagnosed aged 63+ | About half |
| 5-year relative survival — localised (Stage I) | ~89–93% |
| 5-year relative survival — regional | ~72% |
| 5-year relative survival — distant (Stage III/IV) | ~31% |
| 5-year relative survival — all stages combined | ~49% |
| Proportion diagnosed at Stage I (localised) | ~23% |
| Proportion diagnosed at distant stage | ~57% |
| BRCA1 mutation lifetime ovarian cancer risk | 39–46% |
| BRCA2 mutation lifetime ovarian cancer risk | 10–27% |
| Most common type | Epithelial ovarian cancer (~90% of cases) |
| Ovarian cancer incidence trend since 1970s | Declining overall |
Source: American Cancer Society — Key Statistics for Ovarian Cancer 2026 (cancer.org, updated January 2026); NCI SEER Cancer Stat Facts: Ovarian Cancer (seer.cancer.gov, 2025); Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance — Statistics 2026 (ocrahope.org); CDC WONDER database analysis, PMC 2025 (AAMR data 1999–2023); American Cancer Society — Survival Rates for Ovarian Cancer (cancer.org, updated July 2025)
The headline figures from ACS Cancer Facts & Figures 2026 establish the scope: 21,010 new diagnoses and 12,450 deaths in a single year. The death-to-diagnosis ratio of approximately 59% — nearly 6 deaths for every 10 diagnoses — is among the highest of any cancer tracked by the ACS. By comparison, breast cancer’s death-to-diagnosis ratio is approximately 17%, and colorectal cancer’s approximately 38%. The reason for this stark disparity is well-understood: ovarian cancer is diagnosed at an advanced stage in most patients, because there is no approved screening test and because its symptoms — bloating, pelvic discomfort, urinary changes — are common and non-specific, easily attributed to other conditions.
The 254,621 women alive with a history of ovarian cancer in 2023 represents a growing survivor population, partly driven by improved treatment durability. However, the OCRA and NCI explicitly note this includes women who have been cured as well as those in active treatment or remission who may yet die from the disease — the two categories are not separated in prevalence figures. The Median age at diagnosis of approximately 63 confirms ovarian cancer as predominantly a disease of post-menopausal women, though it occurs across the age spectrum. About half of all diagnoses occur in women aged 63 and older, with the incidence rate rising sharply with age through the 60s and 70s.
Ovarian Cancer Incidence Trends in the US 2026
Ovarian Cancer Age-Adjusted Incidence Rate — US (SEER, 2019–2023 average)
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All races, all ages |████████████████████████████████| 10.4 per 100,000
White women |████████████████████████████████| Higher than overall
Black women |████████████████████████ | Lower than White
Hispanic women |████████████████████ | Lower
Asian/Pacific Islander |████████████████ | Lowest
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Overall trend: declining since 1970s | 2026 new cases est.: 21,010
Source: NCI SEER Cancer Stat Facts: Ovarian Cancer 2025; ACS Cancer Facts & Figures 2026
| Incidence Metric | Data |
|---|---|
| New cases 2026 (ACS Cancer Facts & Figures 2026) | 21,010 |
| New cases 2025 (ACS) | 20,890 |
| Rate of new cases (2019–2023 average, SEER) | 10.4 per 100,000 women per year |
| Ovarian cancer as % of female cancers | 1.1% |
| Overall incidence trend since 1970s | Declining |
| Epithelial ovarian cancer incidence decline (2004–2019, SEER) | AAPC −1.2% per year |
| High-grade serous OC decline (2006–2019) | APC −1.2% per year |
| Low-grade serous OC decline (2003–2019) | APC −2.4% per year |
| Age group with highest incidence | 63+ (about half of all new cases) |
| Race — incidence | More common in White women than Black women (ACS 2026) |
| BRCA1 carriers — lifetime ovarian cancer risk | 39–46% |
| BRCA2 carriers — lifetime ovarian cancer risk | 10–27% |
| General population — lifetime ovarian cancer risk | ~1.1% (1 in 91) |
Source: NCI SEER Cancer Stat Facts: Ovarian Cancer (seer.cancer.gov, 2025); ACS — Key Statistics for Ovarian Cancer (cancer.org, January 2026); ScienceDirect — Ovarian Cancer Incidence Trends SEER 2000–2019 (February 2024)
The long-term incidence decline reflects several converging factors. Oral contraceptive use reduces ovarian cancer risk by approximately 30–50% in long-term users, with the benefit persisting for decades. Reduced hormone replacement therapy use after the Women’s Health Initiative findings in 2002 also lowered population exposure to a risk factor for some subtypes. A SEER 15-year trend analysis (2024) confirmed that both high-grade serous and low-grade serous cancers are declining — meaningful because high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC) accounts for ~70% of all ovarian cancer diagnoses and nearly all deaths.
The racial disparity in incidence — ovarian cancer being more common in White women than Black women — is the reverse of many other cancers. However, Black women face worse outcomes once diagnosed, with lower survival rates that reflect disparities in access to care, timely treatment, and clinical trial participation. The BRCA1 and BRCA2 lifetime risk figures — 39–46% and 10–27% respectively — explain why genetic testing for high-risk women has become a standard of care recommendation. Women with a confirmed BRCA mutation face lifetime risks many times the general population’s 1.1%, and risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO) — surgical removal of the fallopian tubes and ovaries — remains the most effective risk-reduction strategy for BRCA carriers, typically recommended in the 35–40 age range for BRCA1 and 40–45 for BRCA2.
Ovarian Cancer Survival Rates in the US 2026
Ovarian Cancer 5-Year Relative Survival by Stage (SEER, 2015–2021 diagnosis cohort)
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Localised (Stage I) |████████████████████████████████████████████████████| ~89–93%
Regional (Stage II) |███████████████████████████████████████████ | ~72%
Distant (Stage III/IV) |████████████████████ | ~31%
All stages combined |███████████████████████████ | ~49%
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~23% diagnosed localised | ~57% diagnosed at distant stage
Source: ACS — Survival Rates for Ovarian Cancer (July 2025); SEER 2015–2021 cohort data
| Survival Metric | Data |
|---|---|
| 5-year relative survival — localised (Stage I) | ~89–93% |
| 5-year relative survival — regional (Stage II) | ~72% |
| 5-year relative survival — distant (Stage III/IV) | ~31% |
| 5-year relative survival — all stages | ~49% |
| Proportion diagnosed at localised stage | ~23% |
| Proportion diagnosed at regional stage | ~19% |
| Proportion diagnosed at distant stage | ~57% |
| Age-adjusted mortality rate (AAMR) in 2023 | 9.52 per 100,000 |
| AAMR in 1999 (comparison) | 14.62 per 100,000 |
| AAMR decline 1999–2023 | −35% |
| Largest AAMR decline by age group | 55–64 years (AAPC −2.15%) |
| Survival data source | SEER, based on 2015–2021 diagnoses |
Source: ACS — Ovarian Cancer Survival Rates (cancer.org, updated July 2025); CDC WONDER ovarian cancer AAMR analysis, PMC 2025; NCI SEER Cancer Stat Facts: Ovarian Cancer 2025
The 49% all-stages 5-year relative survival rate stands in sharp contrast to ovarian cancer’s detection reality. If all ovarian cancers were detected at Stage I — where survival exceeds 89% — the disease’s mortality burden would be dramatically lower. The 57% of diagnoses at distant stage is where lives are lost: a 31% 5-year survival in this group means that roughly 7 in 10 women diagnosed with Stage III or IV ovarian cancer will not be alive five years later. This is the core clinical and public health failure of ovarian cancer management in 2026.
The AAMR decline from 14.62 to 9.52 per 100,000 between 1999 and 2023 reflects real progress — driven by improvements in surgical cytoreduction, platinum-taxane chemotherapy protocol refinement, and the introduction of bevacizumab and PARP inhibitors. The CDC WONDER study published in 2025 found that all demographic groups experienced mortality declines, with the largest absolute decrease in White women and the largest proportional improvement in the 55–64 age group (AAPC of −2.15%). All four US geographic regions recorded declining mortality. However, the study also noted that the District of Columbia saw an increase in AAMR over the period — a geographic outlier that likely reflects concentrated socioeconomic disadvantage and healthcare access barriers in a predominantly urban and minority population.
Ovarian Cancer Symptoms and Risk Factors in the US 2026
Most Common Ovarian Cancer Symptoms (NCI / ACS / OCRA)
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Bloating/swelling (abdomen) |████████████████████████████████████████████████| Most common
Pelvic or abdominal pain |████████████████████████████████████████████ | Very common
Difficulty eating / feeling full|████████████████████████████████████████ | Common
Urinary urgency or frequency |████████████████████████████████████████ | Common
Back pain |████████████████████████████████████████ | Less specific
Fatigue |████████████████████████████████████████ | Non-specific
Constipation or changes in bowel|████████████████████████████████ | Common
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Critical issue: all symptoms are common and non-specific — no validated screening test
Source: NCI; ACS; OCRA (2025–2026)
| Symptom / Risk Factor | Data |
|---|---|
| Most common symptoms | Bloating, pelvic/abdominal pain, difficulty eating, urinary urgency/frequency |
| Other symptoms | Back pain, fatigue, constipation, changes in bowel habits |
| Symptom challenge | All symptoms are non-specific; easily attributed to other conditions |
| Major risk factor — age | Risk increases with age; highest in women 63+ |
| Major risk factor — family history | 1st-degree relative with ovarian cancer significantly elevates risk |
| BRCA1 mutation risk | 39–46% lifetime risk |
| BRCA2 mutation risk | 10–27% lifetime risk |
| Lynch Syndrome risk | 10–12% lifetime ovarian cancer risk |
| HER2 mutation (other HBOC genes) | RAD51C, RAD51D, PALB2, BRIP1 also elevate risk |
| Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) | Certain combined HRT types modestly increase risk |
| Endometriosis | Increases risk of certain subtypes (clear cell, endometrioid) |
| No prior pregnancy / nulliparity | Modestly elevated risk |
| Oral contraceptives | Reduce risk by ~30–50% in long-term users |
| Tubal ligation or oophorectomy | Significantly reduce risk |
| Obesity | Modestly increases risk |
| No approved screening test | CA-125 and ultrasound not recommended for general population |
Source: ACS — What Are the Risk Factors for Ovarian Cancer? (cancer.org); NCI — Ovarian Cancer Prevention (cancer.gov); OCRA — Risk Factors (ocrahope.org, 2025); OncLive April 2026 gynecologic oncologist expert commentary
Ovarian cancer’s lethality is fundamentally a detection problem. The symptoms — bloating, pelvic pain, difficulty eating, and urinary urgency — are experienced by millions of women for dozens of benign reasons. They are the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, urinary tract infections, stress, and dietary intolerance. When they are caused by ovarian cancer, they are usually present because the disease has already spread beyond the ovary. The absence of a validated, cost-effective, population-level screening test remains the most critical unmet need in ovarian cancer medicine. CA-125 blood testing and transvaginal ultrasound have both been evaluated in large randomised trials and found not to reduce mortality when used for general population screening — the UKCTOCS trial’s long-term follow-up, published in The Lancet, showed no mortality benefit from even intensive screening over 16 years of follow-up.
Genetic risk is the clearest, most actionable risk factor in 2026. A confirmed BRCA1 mutation carries a 39–46% lifetime ovarian cancer risk — compared to 1.1% for the general population. Women with Lynch Syndrome face a 10–12% lifetime risk. The introduction of panel genetic testing that simultaneously screens for BRCA1, BRCA2, and other homologous recombination genes (RAD51C, RAD51D, PALB2, BRIP1) has expanded the population eligible for genetic risk counselling and risk-reduction surgery. Oral contraceptive use remains the clearest protective factor — long-term users reduce their ovarian cancer risk by approximately 30–50%, with the benefit persisting for decades after discontinuation.
Ovarian Cancer Treatments in the US 2026
Standard Ovarian Cancer Treatment Pathway (2026 US Clinical Practice)
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Diagnosis (Stage III/IV typical) →
Cytoreductive surgery (debulking) |████████████████████████████████████| Goal: no visible residual disease
Platinum-based chemotherapy (6 cycles)|████████████████████████████████████| Carboplatin + paclitaxel standard
Bevacizumab (anti-VEGF, selected) |████████████████████████████████████| Added for advanced/high-risk disease
PARP inhibitor maintenance (BRCA/HRD) |████████████████████████████████████| Olaparib, niraparib (current approvals)
ADC therapy (recurrent, 2025–2026) |████████████████████████████████████| Emerging — practice-changing (OncLive 2026)
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BRCA mutation testing: standard at diagnosis | HRD testing: increasingly standard
Source: NCCN Guidelines 2026; OncLive April 2026; SGO; FDA approvals; Hematology & Oncology March 2025
| Treatment / Metric | Data |
|---|---|
| Primary surgical treatment | Cytoreductive (debulking) surgery — goal: no visible residual disease |
| Standard chemotherapy | Carboplatin + paclitaxel (6 cycles) — platinum-based backbone |
| Bevacizumab (Avastin) | Anti-VEGF agent added for advanced/high-risk patients |
| PARP inhibitor — olaparib (Lynparza) | FDA-approved first-line maintenance: newly diagnosed advanced OC with BRCA mutation or HRD |
| PARP inhibitor — niraparib (Zejula) | FDA-approved first-line maintenance: newly diagnosed advanced OC (BRCA and BRCA wild-type/HRD) |
| PARP inhibitors first FDA approval | 2014 — olaparib for germline BRCA-mutated OC |
| BRCA mutation prevalence in ovarian cancer | ~22% of high-grade serous tumours |
| HRD prevalence in HGSOC | ~50% of high-grade serous tumours |
| PARP + bevacizumab combination | Approved for BRCA and BRCA wild-type/HRD in newly diagnosed |
| ADC therapy (antibody-drug conjugates) | “Practice-changing” agents in 2025 — OncLive April 2026 |
| Immune checkpoint inhibitor combinations | ICI + PARP inhibitor combinations under active investigation — 2025 SGO data |
| PARP inhibitor FDA withdrawal (2022) | Single-agent olaparib/rucaparib withdrawn for heavily pretreated recurrent OC |
| Current PARP recurrent indications | Maintenance after platinum in recurrent platinum-sensitive OC — BRCA-restricted for some agents |
| Biggest unmet clinical need | Earlier detection — most patients diagnosed at advanced stage (OncLive oncologist, April 2026) |
Source: OncLive — ADCs and PARP Inhibitors: Practice-Changing Agents in Ovarian Cancer (April 2026); Hematology & Oncology — Update on PARP Inhibitors (March 2025); FDA/SGO — PARP inhibitor approval updates (2022–2026); NCI SEER / ACS survival data; NCCN Guidelines 2026
The PARP inhibitor era — which began with olaparib’s first FDA approval in 2014 — represents the most consequential pharmacological advance in ovarian cancer treatment in the last two decades. By blocking the PARP enzyme that cancer cells rely on to repair DNA damage, PARP inhibitors exploit a vulnerability specific to tumours with defective homologous recombination (most commonly caused by BRCA mutations). In the maintenance setting following response to platinum-based chemotherapy, PARP inhibitors extend progression-free survival significantly in BRCA-mutated patients. The SOLO-1 trial’s 5-year data showed that olaparib maintenance in newly diagnosed, advanced BRCA-mutated ovarian cancer achieved a progression-free survival benefit of more than 2.5 years over placebo. Niraparib extends this benefit to patients without BRCA mutations but with other homologous recombination deficient (HRD) tumours.
The 2025–2026 treatment landscape has two emerging areas that oncologists expect to shift practice further. Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) — which link a targeted antibody to a cytotoxic drug payload, delivering chemotherapy directly to cancer cells — were identified by a leading gynecologic oncologist in the OncLive April 2026 update as among the most practice-changing recent developments in ovarian cancer, particularly for recurrent disease. Immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) combinations with PARP inhibitors — tested in trials reported at the 2025 SGO Annual Meeting — showed early evidence of benefit but also raised questions about toxicity and patient selection that remain under investigation. The same oncologist quoted in the April 2026 OncLive analysis was unambiguous about the overarching priority: “Our biggest unmet need is finding out how to identify ovarian cancer sooner” — a statement that places early detection above even the most promising therapeutic advances, reflecting the survival data’s consistent message that stage at diagnosis determines outcomes more than any treatment variable.
Ovarian Cancer by Demographics and Race in the US 2026
Ovarian Cancer Mortality by Demographics — US (CDC WONDER, 1999–2023)
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Overall AAMR decline 1999–2023 |████████████████████████████████████████████████| −35% (14.62 to 9.52/100,000)
White women |████████████████████████████████████████████████| Largest absolute AAMR decrease
Northeast |████████████████████████████████████████ | AAPC −1.95%
Midwest |████████████████████████████████████████████ | AAPC −1.99% (fastest declining region)
South |███████████████████████████████████████ | AAPC −1.72%
West |███████████████████████████████████████ | AAPC −1.73%
District of Columbia |████████████████████████████████████████████████████| Saw INCREASE in AAMR
Ages 55–64 |████████████████████████████████████████████████████| Largest AAPC: −2.15%
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Urban AAPC: −1.83% | Rural AAPC: −1.75% | All geographies and races improved
Source: CDC WONDER database study, PMC 2025
| Demographic Metric | Data |
|---|---|
| White women — incidence | Higher than Black women (ACS 2026) |
| Black women — outcomes | Worse survival outcomes than White women despite lower incidence |
| AAMR decline — White women | Largest absolute decrease (CDC WONDER 2025) |
| AAMR decline — Midwest | Fastest regionally (AAPC −1.99%) |
| AAMR decline — all 4 US regions | All declined |
| AAMR change — District of Columbia | Increased over 1999–2023 period |
| Age group with fastest AAMR decline | 55–64 years (AAPC −2.15%) |
| Urban vs rural AAMR decline | Urban −1.83% vs Rural −1.75% |
| Median age at diagnosis | ~63 years |
| Women over 63 at diagnosis | About half |
| Women with family history — elevated risk | Confirmed — 1st-degree relative increases risk significantly |
| BRCA testing access | Remains unequal; insurance coverage varies |
Source: CDC WONDER ovarian cancer mortality study (PMC/Ncbi, 2025); ACS Key Statistics for Ovarian Cancer 2026 (cancer.org); NCI SEER 2025
The CDC WONDER database analysis covering 1999–2023 confirms that every US demographic group experienced declining ovarian cancer mortality — a genuine win that reflects cumulative improvements in treatment, surgical technique, and, in the high-risk population, more widespread uptake of risk-reducing surgery. White women had the largest absolute decrease in AAMR, but all racial groups analysed showed improvement. The 55–64 age group’s 2.15% annual improvement may reflect the age range that has most benefited from PARP inhibitor therapies introduced in the 2010s, as this group includes women who were in the prime ovarian cancer treatment window during the era of PARP inhibitor approval.
The District of Columbia outlier — the only geography in the analysis that recorded an increase in ovarian cancer AAMR over the study period — is a concentrated signal of how healthcare access inequality translates into differential outcomes. DC’s predominantly Black urban population faces documented barriers to gynaecologic cancer care access, including later-stage diagnosis and lower rates of receipt of guideline-recommended treatment. The disparity between Black and White women in survival outcomes despite Black women having a lower incidence reflects structural inequities in access to high-volume, specialist gynaecologic oncology centres — where survival outcomes for ovarian cancer patients are demonstrably better than at general hospitals — as well as lower rates of BRCA testing and uptake of genetic counselling.
Disclaimer: This research report is compiled from publicly available sources. While reasonable efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is given as to the completeness or reliability of the information. We accept no liability for any errors, omissions, losses, or damages of any kind arising from the use of this report.