Recently, the World Health Organization published its 2022 estimates regarding incidence and mortality worldwide, for 36 cancers, in 185 countries.
According to this data, there were close to 20 million new cancer cases in 2022 and almost 10 million cancer patients died of the disease.
The estimates suggest that approximately one in five men or women develop cancer during their lifetime, whereas around one in nine men and one in twelve women die of the disease.
Lung cancer was the most frequently diagnosed cancer, responsible for almost 2.5 million new cases (approx. 12.5% of all cancers globally), followed by female breast cancer (approx. 11.5% of all cancers globally), colorectal (approx. 9.5%), prostate (approx. 7.5%) and stomach (approx. 5%) cancers.
Lung cancer and breast cancer were the most frequent cancers in men and women, respectively.
Lung cancer was also the leading cause of cancer death with an estimated 1.8 million deaths (approx. 19%), followed by colorectal cancer (approx. 9%), liver (approx. 8%), breast cancer (approx. 7%) and stomach cancer (approx. 7%).
Incidence rates varied from four-fold to five-fold across world regions, with high rates in developed countries such as Australia/New Zealand, to low rates in developing countries in Western Afrika and South-Central Asia.
According to the authors' estimations, which point towards an increase in cancer incidence over time, the absolute number of cancer patients diagnosed in 2050 will reach 35 million.
Investments in prevention, including the targeting of key risk factors for cancer (e.g. smoking, obesity and infection), could avert millions of future cancer diagnoses and save many lives worldwide
Bray F. et al (2024) Global Cancer Statistics, 2022. CA Cancer J. Clin.