Cancer is a collection of more than 100 related diseases and it starts when normal cell processes are damaged, and the body is unable to fix them.
Genetic changes that can cause cancer may be inherited from our parents (such as Lynch syndrome) or may be acquired due to environmental exposures. Cells with such damage can grow and multiple without stopping and over time, for many cancers, lead to solid growths called tumours.
Quick facts
Cancer is a collection of more than 100 related diseases, characterised by genetic changes that lead cells to grow and multiply uncontrollably.
There were an estimated 20 million new cases of cancer in the year 2022, around the world. This is projected to increase to 30.2 million diagnoses per year by 2040.
About 30-50% of cancer cases could be prevented through changes to lifestyle and environment.
Cancer can be treated with several different modalities, such as surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy, and hormone therapy.
Cancer prevalence
Countries with a lower human development index– a statistical tool that measures a country’s social and economic well-being– are projected to have the greatest percentage increase in the burden of cancer in the coming decades.
Overall age-standardised cancer incidence is higher in countries with a higher human development index, theorized to be related to dietary and lifestyle patterns, and the availability of detection and diagnostic programmes associated with established health systems. However, for specific cancers, such as cervical cancer, the burden is substantially greater in lower income countries.
More data are needed on the 370+ million Indigenous people living worldwide; at present, New Zealand is the only country to systematically record and report cancer incidence data for Indigenous peoples. However, available data from high-income countries suggest that these communities bear a disproportionately high burden of cancer morbidity and mortality in comparison to non-Indigenous white populations living in the same countries.
Cancer prevention
Current estimates suggest that 30-50% of cancer cases could be prevented through behavioural and environmental changes. Examples of such changes include:
Avoiding the use of tobacco, including cigarettes and smokeless tobacco.
Maintaining a healthy weight.
Being physically active.
Limiting alcohol intake.
Eating a healthy diet high in fruit, vegetables, and wholegrains.
Practicing safe sex.
Participating in preventative vaccination programmes (human papilloma virus and hepatitis B).
Participating in screening programmes.
Avoiding or reducing exposure to ultraviolet radiation.
Avoiding urban air pollution and indoor smoke from use of solid fuels.
Treatment for cancer
There are several different treatments available for cancer, such as surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy, and hormone therapy. Most people with cancer are treated with a combination of treatments depending on their cancer type, disease stage, and other personal characteristics.
Resource limitation in low- and middle-income country contexts – such as inadequate nursing and surgery capacity, inaccessibility of treatment modalities, lack of universal health coverage – mean that diagnosis, treatment, and survival are lower compared to high-income countries.
How is GACD addressing the cancer burden?
One challenge to reducing this burden of cancer in populations experiencing disparities worldwide is to_ overcome barriers in implementation of basic cancer prevention and care strategies_. Implementation of effective, evidence-based interventions has been central to cancer control in many high-income countries. Yet, in lower-income countries and other low-resource environments, such interventions are under-used or have limited impact because of implementation challenges that have yet to be identified, researched, and addressed.
GACD has already invested more than $50 million in 23 projects across 16 countries to address the burden of cancer in low- and middle-income countries and among key vulnerable populations in high-income countries as part of its cancer prevention funding call. Through the focus on implementation science, these projects will identify and scale-up the best strategies to prevent and control cancers in their specific contexts.
You can find out more about the GACD projects addressing cancer by visiting our projects page.
Would this content be useful for a friend or colleague?