Anti-vax and anti-science posters on social media often ask questions to which they absolutely do not want answers.

For example: If you think the government cares about you, why don’t they care about the massive increase in cancers in young people? No one has any answers!

Let’s quantify “massive” for a start. Cancer diagnoses amongst people between 20 and 29 increased from about 2.2 per 100,000 population to about 4.6 per 100,000 population in 2025. That is certainly a statistically significant figure, but “massive” is an alarmist exaggeration.

The data commonly cited as showing increases in cancer rates in young people dates from between 1999 and 2020. It cannot have anything to do with COVID vaccines, which were first rolled out in Australia in February 2021.

The graph below shows rates of cancer diagnosis between 2000 and 2025. Worthy of note is that there has been no overall increase since 2016. This graph and the statistics quoted above both come from Cancer Australia. https://www.canceraustralia.gov.au/cancer-types/early-onset-cancer/statistics

Vaccines and cancer - no connection.

In research and medical circles, as opposed to social media, the reasons for the increase in the number of cases diagnosed are well-understood. Firstly, increased, earlier, and more precise diagnostics mean we are catching more cancers earlier. Not that they weren’t there before, we are just doing a better job of finding them.

Obesity, sedentary lifestyles and occupations (far more people now spend their working days sitting in a chair), processed foods and alcohol consumption also have a role.

You can reduce your risk by taking some simple steps. Don’t smoke or vape. Exercise regularly. Stay close your ideal weight. If you consume alcohol, do so only occasionally and in small amounts. Reduce intake of heavily processed foods. If your job is largely sedentary, get up and walk or do some stretches every half hour.

In addition, it is worth remembering average lifespan is longer than thirty years ago, and cancer is highly correlated with higher age. While not related to incidence in younger people, this means we would expect to see higher rates of cancer simply because people are living longer.

Old or young, the key thing to remember is that even though more people are being diagnosed with cancer, fewer people are dying of cancer. We are, very gradually, beating cancer back.