The global cancer burden of adolescents and young adults is projected to increase by approximately 12% by 2050, according to a Nov. 15 study published in The Lancet Oncology.
Researchers from across the globe analyzed Global Cancer Observatory data from 2022 and UN World Population Prospect data from 2019 for the study.
Here are six things to know:
- There were approximately 1,300,196 cancer cases and 377,621 deaths among adolescents and young adults in 2022.
- The age-standardized incidence rate was 1.9 times higher and the age-standardized mortality rate was 1.2 times higher in females than males. Breast or cervical cancer had the highest incidence and mortality rate.
- Across the globe, the age-standardized incidence rate was highest in high-income countries while the age-standardized mortality rate was highest in low-income countries.
- Though the adolescent and young adult cancer burden is projected to increase by approximately 12% in 2050, the burden will decline by 10.7% in countries with very high human development indexes.
- The adolescent and young adult cancer burden of incidence and mortality is projected to increase by 102.3% in countries with low human development indexes.
- A recent study found that across all ages, the number of worldwide cancer cases and deaths in 2050 will rise to 35.3 million and 18.5 million, respectively.