Monitoring the Burden of Lung Cancer in Germany: Trends in Incidence and Survival Using ZfKD Registry Data (2020–2023)
Objective: To describe recent trends in lung cancer incidence, staging, morphology, and survival outcomes in Germany using comprehensive population-based data from the German Centre for Cancer Registry Data (ZfKD) .
Methods: This retrospective analysis included all lung cancer cases diagnosed from 2020 to 2023 in individuals aged 18 years or older. Anonymized data were sourced from the ZfKD, which compiles mandatory cancer notifications across the German federal states. Variables analyzed included patient demographics, tumor characteristics (histological subtype, stage), and Kaplan-Meier-based survival estimates stratified by cancer subtype and stage.
Results: Stage IV was the most common at diagnosis (41% in NSCLC, 59% in SCLC). Median survival was 12.8 months for NSCLC and 8.1 months for SCLC, dropping to 6.5 and 6.8 months, respectively, in stage IV disease.
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