Cancers increased by 33% between 2005 and 2015. Locations vary according to gender and income. 8.7 million people died in 2015.
The victims number in the millions. Cancer continues to spread around the world. During their lifetime, one third of men will develop a tumor. Women have a one in four chance of suffering from it. What is the face of this pathology? In the JAMA Oncology, an international group provides a precise portrait of cancer on the planet. In 2015, it affected 17.5 million people and killed 8.7 million. After cardiovascular disease, it is the second leading cause of death.
Develop prevention
The observation of 2015 is first of all that of progress. Since 2005, the number of cases has increased by 33%. There are many factors, but the aging of the population dominates. The explanations table then shows population growth and the evolution of age-related risk factors. “The war on cancer has not been won,” concede the authors. But recent developments in personalized medicine and new therapeutic approaches, such as immunotherapy, point to the hope of improving cancer survival. “
Indeed, survival remains a problem, including in developed countries. The treatments will not be enough to improve the balance sheet, say the researchers. Prevention must also gain momentum. Routine treatment of infection with Helicobacter pylori is cited as an example: it allowed the gradual, and above all constant, decline of stomach cancer. It is still the fifth most diagnosed form in the world – with 1.3 million cases. Two forms of cancer can be effectively reduced: those of the liver, by a massive fight against hepatitis, and those of the cervix, by a broad vaccination against human papillomaviruses.
Gender inequalities
But cancer is also unequal: the most advantaged socio-professional categories are also the most affected. There are also disparities between countries. Tumors of infectious origin clearly dominate in low and moderate income states. Another notable result, the profile of tumors is not the same according to sex.
Prostate cancer is the most common location in men, but not the most fatal. Cancers of the trachea, bronchi or lungs kill more people. For women, on the other hand, breast cancer is both the most common and the deadliest.
Children are not spared from this disease either. Leukemia and other neoplasms clearly dominate in the distribution of localizations.
The 10 most common cancers in the world
1) Breast cancer – 2.4 million cases.
2) Cancers of the trachea, bronchi or lungs – 2 million cases.
3) Colorectal cancer – 1.7 million cases.
4) Prostate cancer – 1.6 million cases.
5) Stomach cancer – 1.3 million cases.
6) Liver cancer – 854,000 cases.
7) Non-Hodgkin lymphoma – 666,000 cases.
8) Leukemia – 606,000 cases.
9) Bladder cancer – 541,000 cases.
10) Cancer of the cervix – 526,000 cases.
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