OBJECTIVES: Mortality data from Jamaica in 2012 were used to estimate a) the Years of Potential Life Lost (YPLL), b) the financial cost associated with YPLL, c) the Potentially Productive Years of Life Lost (PPYLL), and d) the Average Years of Life Lost (AYLL). METHODS: Jamaica cancer mortality data (2012) were analyzed. An upper limit of 75 years was established for the YPLL. The YPLL was divided by the total number of deaths in each year to calculate the AYLL. The PPYLL was calculated by setting an upper limit of 65 years and a lower of 16 years. The economic cost associated with mortality was calculated by the method of willingness to pay, using three times the GDP per capita in 2010 (US$4,827.00), with a discount rate of 3% and an annual increase of 1%. The analysis was by gender. RESULTS: Mortality by cancer among those under 75 years was 2,094 cases, 1,164 (55.6%) in men and 930 (44.4%) in women. The total YPLL was 34,717 years, 16,772 years (48.3%) for men and 17,945 years (51.7%) for women. The AYLL was 16.6 years, 14.4 years for men and 19.3 years for women.  The total YPPLL was 16,491 years, 7,133 years for men and 9,358 for women. The economic cost associated with cancer was US$381.1 million, US$196.0 million for women and US$196.1 million for men. CONCLUSIONS: a) Mortality due to cancer in Jamaica was higher in men but YPLL was higher in women; b) cancer deaths among women occur at a younger age than men; d) the economic cost associated with cancer represented 2.2% of the GDP of Jamaica. These data show the high economic burden of cancer in Jamaica in both men and women, and highlights the unmet medical needs for cancer in Jamaica.