Oral Cancer Incidence (New Cases) by Age, Race, and Sex

Oral cancer incidence rates (new cases) for both sexes have shown a steady increase from the mid-2000s until the latest (2022) National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data. Age-adjusted incidence rates of oral cancer in Black American men decreased steadily over the past three decades until 2010, but have remained stable since then. Incidence rates for Black American women have continued to decrease until 2022. The age-adjusted incidence rates for Black men (includes Hispanic) have decreased from a high of 31.3 cases (per 100,000) in 1987 to 13.1 cases in 2022, and from a high of 12.8 cases (per 100,000) in 1979 to 5.5 cases in Black women (includes Hispanic) in 2022. However, it increased from 10.4 in 2003 to 13.3 for White men and women (includes Hispanics) in 2022.

Table 1 presents oral cancer incidence rates for adult men and women of all age groups and for selected racial and ethnic groups.

Oral Cancer Incidence

Overall, the 5-year age-adjusted oral cancer incidence rate is 11.6 adults per 100,000.
The 5-year age-adjusted oral cancer incidence rates are much higher for men than for women (70.5 vs 23.0 per 100,000 cases).
The 5-year age-adjusted oral cancer incidence rates are higher for non-Hispanic White men (81.3 per 100,000) than for Hispanic (45.3 per 100,000) and non-Hispanic Black (52.7 per 100,000) men.
The incidence of oral cancer increases with age. The increase becomes more rapid after age 50 (40.9 per 100,000), particularly for adults aged 65 years and older (71.4 per 100,000).

Table 1: Oral Cavity and Pharynx Cancer 5-year Incidence Rates by Age, Race, and Sex, 2018-2022

* Age-adjusted incidence rates in cases per 100,000
Race		All Ages		Age <50		Age 50–64		Age 65+
Race		Sex	Rate (%)	SE	Rate	SE	Rate	SE	Rate	SE
All Races	Both Sexes	11.7	0.04	2.3	0.02	26.8	0.14	47.0	0.21
	Female	6.6	0.04	1.6	0.03	13.1	0.13	27.2	0.21
	Male	17.4	0.07	3.0	0.04	40.9	0.24	71.4	0.38
Non-Hispanic White	Both Sexes	13.7	0.05	2.7	0.03	33.1	0.2	54.0	0.27
	Female	7.4	0.05	1.7	0.04	15.0	0.19	30.7	0.27
	Male	20.6	0.09	3.7	0.06	51.1	0.35	81.7	0.49
Non-Hispanic Black	Both Sexes	8.4	0.1	2.0	0.06	20.7	0.35	30.2	0.54
	Female	5.0	0.1	1.6	0.07	11.3	0.35	17.0	0.52
	Male	12.9	0.18	2.6	0.1	31.5	0.62	49.7	1.1
Hispanic	Both Sexes	7.3	0.07	1.5	0.03	14.6	0.22	31.8	0.46
	Female	4.7	0.08	1.2	0.04	8.7	0.24	19.7	0.49
	Male	10.4	0.13	1.8	0.05	20.6	0.37	47.3	0.87
Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander	Both Sexes	8.7	0.11	2.9	0.07	19.0	0.38	30.0	0.56
	Female	5.8	0.12	2.1	0.09	11.2	0.4	20.4	0.62
	Male	12.1	0.18	3.7	0.12	27.8	0.67	41.9	1
Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native	Both Sexes	11.5	0.63	2.4	0.37	31.7	2.46	39.8	3.47
	Female	6.4	0.64	1.8	0.45	17.5	2.53	19.5	3.23
	Male	17.7	1.17	3.1	0.6	47.2	4.34	66.5	6.88
White, Includes Hispanic	Both Sexes	12.3	0.04	2.3	0.03	28.6	0.16	50.6	0.24
	Female	6.8	0.04	1.5	0.03	13.5	0.16	29.0	0.24
	Male	18.4	0.08	3.0	0.04	43.7	0.28	76.5	0.44
Black, Includes Hispanic	Both Sexes	8.2	0.09	2.0	0.05	20.0	0.33	29.9	0.52
	Female	4.9	0.09	1.5	0.07	11.0	0.33	16.9	0.51
	Male	12.5	0.17	2.5	0.09	30.2	0.59	48.9	1.06

Source: SEER*Explorer: An interactive website for SEER cancer statistics [Internet]. Surveillance Research Program, National Cancer Institute; 2025 Apr 16. [updated: 2026 Jan 8; cited 2026 Mar 6]. Available from: https://seer.cancer.gov/statistics-network/explorer/. Data source(s): SEER Incidence Data, November 2024 Submission (1975–2022), SEER 21 registries (excluding Illinois). Expected Survival Life Tables by Socio-Economic Standards.

Last Reviewed
May 2026