Ont. hospital ‘seeing a lot of younger patients’ with breast cancer

The number of new breast cancer patients are increasing in Canada, with one Toronto hospital reporting a 166 per cent increase. Adrian Ghobrial reports.

The Canadian Cancer Society says the number of new breast cancer patients in Canada is estimated to have hit a new high all-time high in 2024.

It’s a somber milestone that doctors and cancer survivor Robby Spring hopes will resonate with women across the country.

“I had a highly aggressive cancer which is why I ultimately needed chemo,” said Spring, recalling the diagnosis she received in May 2023.

Spring, who lives in Toronto, was diagnosed with breast cancer at 35. Just two months earlier, Spring’s 43-year-old sister was also told she had breast cancer. It was a crushing blow for their entire family. Five years earlier, their mother was also diagnosed with breast cancer.

At the time, Spring said, “I just didn’t want to call my mom. How could I tell her that she has two daughters going through cancer at the same time? One (daughter) is a nightmare, but two?”

The Spring family is just one example of a growing number of new patients. According to Statistics Canada data that excludes Quebec, there were nearly 21,000 new cases of breast cancer across the rest of the country in 2019. The Canadian Cancer Society estimates that number increased to 30,800 in 2024.

There are multiple factors that could be at play for the increase, according to Breast Cancer Canada CEO, Kimberly Carson. “We know during COVID-19 that there were less people being diagnosed with cancer. We now believe we will see that number (of new patients) come in at a much higher rate and at a higher incidence of progression of cancer,” she said.

“Another factor is now we’ve become very good at screening and detection. And on top of that, we’re seeing a rise in the number of cases of cancer.”

At Toronto’s North York General Hospital, there were 1,155 new breast cancer patients in 2019. In 2023, that number jumped to 3,076 – a 166 per cent increase.

‘A lot of younger patients’

“As a frontline worker, I’m very well aware of the increase in patients that we’re seeing,” said Dr. Brian Pinchuk, a surgical oncologist at North York General Hospital.

Though its not just the number of new patients that’s raising eyebrows, “The highest number newly diagnosed patients we’re seeing are under 50 years of age, so we’re seeing a lot of younger patients come through our centre,” he added.

Ontario recently joined British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Atlantic Canada in granting women as young as 40 a mammogram if they request one. In Alberta and Manitoba, the age is 45. Quebec is currently reviewing their policy.

Now 37-years-old, Spring still wouldn’t qualify anywhere in the country.

“The younger you are, the more likely you have a more aggressive breast cancer. And so, catching it early is imperative,” Spring said.

Granting voluntary mammograms to more Canadians means the number of new patients is likely to rise even higher, according to Carson, but there’s a silver lining.

“Patients that have been screened at an earlier stage and at a younger stage, the outcomes are better for the patient, and the cost effectiveness is better on the system. Because the diagnosis is less invasive, there’s less treatment involved, there’s less work on the system, and less taxation on the system” Carson said.

Spring has an additional warning for women, like herself, who have dense breast tissue.

“My mammogram was clear, but my ultrasound showed I had a 1.5-centimetre tumour that was found to be cancer. My sister and I ended up undergoing breast cancer treatment at the same time.”