The incidence of cancer at a young age has risen by 79% globally in 30 years
Over the past 30 years, cancer incidence and mortality among young adults has increased substantially. The most pronounced increases in mortality and loss of healthy years of life are associated with colorectal, breast, tracheal, bronchial, lung and stomach cancers.Researchers from Harvard University, the University of Edinburgh, the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Imperial College London and Zhejiang University in China estimated the incidence and mortality of 29 cancers among young adults over the past 30 years. The results of the study are published in the journal BMJ Oncology.
The analysis showed that from 1990 to 2019, the incidence of cancer among people under 50 years old increased by 79.1% globally. The number of cancer-related deaths in this cohort increased by 27.7%.
The fastest increases in nasopharyngeal and prostate cancer incidence have been recorded in 30 years among people under 50 years of age. The most pronounced increases in mortality and loss of healthy life years (DALYs) were found to be associated with colorectal, breast, tracheal, bronchial, lung, and stomach cancers.
The highest cancer incidence rate among young adults in 2019 was found in high-income countries in North America (273.2 cases per 100,000 people). The lowest is in sub-Saharan Africa (37.4 cases per 100,000 people). In Russia, the cancer incidence rate in people under 50 years of age is between 90 and 120 cases per 100,000 people.
The highest cancer mortality rates in young people were found in Oceania (38.1 cases per 100,000 people), Eastern Europe, including Russia (33.7), and Central Asia (31.8). The lowest cancer mortality among young people was found in Asia and the Pacific (16.3 cases per 100,000 people).
The most pronounced increase in incidence over 30 years was found in the United Arab Emirates (by 1127.6%), Qatar (by 1089.5%) and Saudi Arabia. In Lithuania, Georgia and Latvia, cancer incidence in people under 50 years of age decreased by an average of 30%. Mortality rates also increased most significantly in the UAE. The most pronounced decrease in mortality was noted in Latvia. In Russia, there is also a downward trend in cancer incidence and mortality in young people.