About cancer

Information to help you understand cancer and what causes it.

What is cancer?

Cancer is a disease of the cells in our body. It happens when abnormal cells grow out of control, producing a tumour in the body or abnormal cells in the blood. 

Visit our What is cancer? page to find out more about how cancer develops and types of cancer. 

 

Did you know?

There are over 200 different types of cancer, each with a specific name, treatment and chance of being cured.

What causes cancer?

Cancer starts with a mistake in our DNA

Mistakes can happen by chance when cells are dividing or be inherited from our parents. 

We have information about things that increase the risk of mistakes in our DNA and about how some inherited gene changes can increase cancer risk. 

Cancer facts and figures

Find out about the number of cancers diagnosed in Ireland each year, the most common cancers and information on survival and mortality. 

Getting cancer information

man reading cancer information

With some much information available, it can be hard to make sense of it all and to know which information you can trust. We have advice on getting reliable cancer infomation and how to make sense of medical language. 

Read helpful advice on Getting cancer information


Talk to a Cancer Nurse

Support Line

Support Line

Our Cancer Nurses offer confidential advice, support and information for anyone affected by cancer. Call or email supportline@irishcancer.ie. Video calls available. Mon-Fri: 9am-5pm
Support Line
Our Daffodil Centres

Our Daffodil Centres

Our Daffodil Centres in 13 hospitals nationwide are staffed by Cancer Nurses and trained volunteers who provide face-to-face advice, support and information for anyone affected by cancer.
Our Daffodil Centres