Background Information:
Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO)’s cancer agency, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), released the latest estimates of the global burden of cancer. WHO also published survey results from 115 countries, showing a majority of countries do not adequately finance priority cancer and palliative care services, as part of universal health coverage (UHC).
Important terms:
Incidence: New cases (of a health condition)
Prevalence: New plus old cases (of a health condition)
Mortality: Death due to something/ some cause
Morbidity: The condition or state of being unwell due to a health condition
Key Messages:
Global cancer statistics (2022)
In 2022, there were an estimated 20 million new cancer cases and 9.7 million deaths. The estimated number of people who were alive within 5 years following a cancer diagnosis was 53.5 million. About 1 in 5 people develop cancer in their lifetime, approximately 1 in 9 men and 1 in 12 women die from the disease.
The global WHO survey on UHC and cancer shows that only 39% of participating countries covered the basics of cancer management as part of their financed core health services for all citizens, ‘health benefit packages’ (HBP). Only 28% of participating countries additionally covered care for people who require palliative care, including pain relief in general, and not just linked to cancer.
For men, prostate and colorectal cancers were the second and third most commonly occurring cancers, while liver and colorectal cancers were the second and third most common causes of cancer death.
For women, lung and colorectal cancer were second and third for both the number of new cases and of deaths.
Lung cancer was the most commonly occurring cancer worldwide with 2.5 million new cases accounting for 12.4% of the total new cases. Female breast cancer ranked second (2.3 million cases, 11.6%), followed by colorectal cancer (1.9 million cases, 9.6%), prostate cancer (1.5 million cases, 7.3%), and stomach cancer (970 000 cases, 4.9%).
Lung cancer was the leading cause of cancer death (1.8 million deaths, 18.7% of the total cancer deaths) followed by colorectal cancer (900 000 deaths, 9.3%), liver cancer (760 000 deaths, 7.8%), breast cancer (670 000 deaths, 6.9%) and stomach cancer (660 000 deaths, 6.8%). Lung cancer’s re-emergence as the most common cancer is likely related to persistent tobacco use in Asia.
There were some differences by sex in incidence and mortality from the global total for both sexes. For women, the most commonly diagnosed cancer and leading cause of cancer death was breast cancer, whereas it was lung cancer for men. Breast cancer was the most common cancer in women in the vast majority of countries (157 of 185).
India cancer statistics (2022)
A total of 1.4 million new cancer cases occurred in India in 2022, with 0.9 million deaths due to cancer. The total prevalence of cancer over the preceding 5 years in India was 3.25 million. Overall, the top three cancers were also the top three causes of cancer deaths (in the same order): Breast cancer; lip, oral cavity cancer; and cervical cancer.
In males, the leading site of cancer was lip and oral cavity, with 107 812 cases (15.6% of all cancers in males). Second was lung cancer with 58 970 cases (8.5% of all cancers in males), and third was cancer of the oesophagus with 45 608 cases (6.6% of all cancers in males).
In females, the leading cancer was breast cancer with 192 020 cases (26.6% of all cancers in females). Second was cervical cancer with 127 526 cases (17.7% of all cancers in females), and third was cancer of the ovary with 47 333 cases (6.6% of all cancers in females).
Overall, the leading site of cancer was breast cancer, accounting for 13.6% of all cancers, followed by cancer of the lip and oral cavity (10.2% of all cancers), and cervical cancer (9.0% of all cancers).
Projected cancer burden increase in 2050
Over 35 million new cancer cases are predicted in 2050, a 77% increase from the estimated 20 million cases in 2022. The rapidly growing global cancer burden reflects both population ageing and growth, as well as changes to people’s exposure to risk factors, several of which are associated with socioeconomic development. Tobacco, alcohol and obesity are key factors behind the increasing incidence of cancer, with air pollution still a key driver of environmental risk factors.
Useful Links:
Link to WHO’s related news release:
Link to IARC world factsheet:
https://gco.iarc.who.int/media/globocan/factsheets/populations/900-world-fact-sheet.pdf
Link to IARC India factsheet:
https://gco.iarc.who.int/media/globocan/factsheets/populations/356-india-fact-sheet.pdf
Link to IARC page containing factsheets on individual cancers:
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