Cancer cases in under-50s worldwide are up nearly 80% in three decades. Study finds More than a million under-50s a year dying of cancer and the figure is projected to rise by another 21% by 2030.
A recent study published in the British Medical Journal suggests that changes in diet, lifestyle, and environment could be responsible for the rise in global cancer cases among adults under 50 years old. According to the study, there has been a 79.1% increase in early-onset cancer cases and a 27.7% increase in deaths caused by cancer between 1990 and 2019.
In 2019, the highest mortality rates and DALYs were caused by breast cancer, tracheal cancer, bronchus and lung cancer, stomach cancer, and colorectal cancer. The incidence rates of early-onset nasopharyngeal and prostate cancer showed the fastest increasing trend globally, while early-onset liver cancer had the steepest decline.
 Early-onset colorectal cancers had high DALYs within the top five ranking for both men and women. High-middle and middle Sociodemographic Index (SDI) regions had the highest burden of early-onset cancer. The morbidity of early-onset cancer increased with the SDI, and the mortality rate decreased considerably when the SDI increased from 0.7 to 1.
The projections indicated that the global number of incidences and deaths of early-onset cancer would increase by 31% and 21% in 2030, respectively. Dietary risk factors (diet high in red meat, low in fruits, high in sodium and low in milk, etc.), alcohol consumption and tobacco use are the main risk factors underlying early-onset cancers.
The analysis showed that the number of cases was estimated to be 1.82 billion in 1990, which increased by 79 per cent to 2.36 billion. The death tally was 0.83 billion in 1990, climbing to 1.06 billion in 2019, according to the study.Â
The study also pointed out that the burden of early onset was higher in high-income countries. The incidence rate was the highest in North America and the lowest in western Sub-Saharan AfricaÂ
