Summary

This report presents the latest available information on the incidence of mesothelioma in Australia, along with mortality and asbestos exposure information, using data from the Australian Mesothelioma Registry (AMR), the National Mortality Database (NMD) and the Australian Cancer Database (ACD).

Australia has one of the highest measured incidence rates of mesothelioma in the world (Bray et al. 2017; Huang et al. 2023). Each year in Australia, between 700 and 800 people (about 2 people each day) are diagnosed with the rare and aggressive cancer. In the 2022–23 financial year, the estimated health system expenditure for mesothelioma cases was $49.9 million (total cancers $18.9 billion) (AIHW 2024).

Men are more likely to be diagnosed with mesothelioma than women across all age groups, and the number of cases diagnosed each year for both men and women has steadily increased over the past 40 years. There is no cure for mesothelioma with the main cause being exposure to asbestos, a material that has been banned in Australia since the end of 2003 (ASEA 2016). It can take many years after being exposed to asbestos (usually between 20 and 60 years) for mesothelioma to develop (Cancer Council 2025a).

Note that in this report, incidence data includes cases of mesothelioma notified up until 1 May 2025. For further information see Mesothelioma in Australia 2024 – methodology paper.