Burr Ridge, Ill. – September 19, 2026 -- SkinCure Oncology reported that 4.7 million Americans are diagnosed with nonmelanoma skin cancer (NMSC) annually, a figure more than 40 percent higher than the widely cited benchmark of 3.3 million patients that has anchored healthcare policy discussions for over a decade.
Updated analysis replaces a 14-year-old dataset
The long-standing statistic of 3.3 million Americans diagnosed with 5.4 million NMSC lesions annually stems from a 2015 study built on 2012 data. SkinCure Oncology's new benchmark puts annual lesion counts at 6.7 to 7.7 million, reflecting the disease's disproportionate impact on aging populations.
Four independent methodologies converge on the same figure
The company's analysis cites demographic shifts as the primary driver: 80 percent of NMSC cases occur in patients aged 60 and older, and the U.S. population aged 65-plus has grown nearly 50 percent since 2012, from 43.1 million to roughly 64 million in 2026. Holding individual risk constant at 2012 levels against this demographic surge produces the 4.7 million figure. A conservative compound-growth model—applying just one-third of the 7 percent annual growth rate observed between 2006 and 2012—arrives at the identical estimate. Federal Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data corroborates that patient counts had already exceeded 4 million more than a decade ago, while a linear extrapolation of the 2006-2012 growth trajectory suggests the true figure could reach 5.9 million, framing 4.7 million as a conservative floor.
CEO calls outdated data a barrier to patient care
"Those old figures are woefully out of date and grossly understate the true impact of the disease," said SkinCure Oncology CEO Kerwin Brandt. He added that the revised estimate "underscores the critical importance of educating the public about skin cancer and providing them access to all available treatment options."
Company pushes for a national NMSC registry and reimbursement reform
Brandt called for the healthcare community, policymakers and industry stakeholders to establish comprehensive national reporting of NMSC cases and to revisit insurance reimbursement policies that would encourage early-stage lesion identification and treatment. He specifically named Image-Guided Superficial Radiation Therapy (IGSRT), an FDA-cleared, nonsurgical option, as among the treatments requiring expanded coverage support. "The millions of patients dealing with skin cancer today deserve a healthcare system that counts them all and appropriately prioritizes their care," Brandt said.