Cancer incidence and mortality statistics reported by the American Cancer Society¹ and other resources were used to create the list. To qualify as a common cancer for the list, the estimated annual incidence for 2012 had to be 40,000 cases or more.

The most common type of cancer on the list is prostate cancer, with more than 240,000 new cases expected in the United States in 2012. The cancer on the list with the lowest incidence is pancreatic cancer, with 43,920 new cases expected in 2012. 

Because colon and rectal cancers are often referred to as "colorectal cancers," these two cancer types are combined for the list. For 2012, the estimated number of new cases of colon cancer and rectal cancer are 103,170 and 40,290, respectively, adding to a total of 143,460 new cases of colorectal cancer.

Kidney cancers can be divided into two major groups, renal parenchyma cancers and renal pelvis cancers. Approximately 92 percent of kidney cancers develop in the renal parenchyma,² and nearly all of these cancers are renal cell cancers. The estimated number of new cases of renal cell cancer for 2012 is 59,588.

The following table gives the estimated numbers of new cases and deaths for each common cancer type:

Cancer Type	Estimated New Cases	Estimated Deaths
Bladder	73,510	14,880
Breast (Female – Male)	226,870 – 2,190	39,510 – 410
Colon and Rectal (Combined)	143,460	51,690
Endometrial	47,130	8,010
Kidney (Renal Cell) Cancer	59,588	12,484
Leukemia (All Types)	47,150	23,540
Lung (Including Bronchus)	226,160	160,340
Melanoma	76,250	9,180
Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma	70,130	18,940
Pancreatic	43,920	37,390
Prostate	241,740	28,170
Thyroid	56,460	1,780

Source:http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/commoncancers