Between 1990 and 2023, cancer cases and fatalities increased in India, while a decrease was noted in other parts of the world, including the United States and China, as per a study.
During this 33-year timeframe, cancer cases in India surged by 26 percent, rising from 84.8 per 1 lakh population to 107.2 in 2023, according to research led by Dr. Lisa Force from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington, as reported by The Times of India.
Conversely, in the same period, cancer cases in China and the United States decreased by 19 percent and 20 percent, respectively, while cancer-related deaths fell by 43 percent in China and 33 percent in the United States, the study indicated.
The success in these two countries is attributed to effective tobacco control measures, universal vaccination programs, and organized screening initiatives, as explained by Dr. Abhishek Shankar, a radiation oncologist at AIIMS Delhi, in an interview with ToI.
India has fallen behind due to consistently high risk factors, including tobacco use, obesity, and infections, along with limited access to early detection through screening, according to Shankar.
4.3 million cancer deaths linked to behavioral factors
In 2023, approximately 4.3 million cancer fatalities were attributed to modifiable risk factors, as stated in the study.
In the realm of cancer mortality, ‘modifiable risk factors’ pertain to behaviors that elevate an individual’s risk of developing and succumbing to cancer. Public health interventions can significantly reduce cancer deaths in these scenarios. For instance, ‘modifiable risk factors’ encompass tobacco use (such as smoking), alcohol intake, obesity, exposure to ultraviolet radiation, and infections like HPV. Public health initiatives can mitigate, if not completely eliminate, these risks.
The Times of India reported that the study recommended that evidence-based strategies, including HPV and Hepatitis-B vaccinations, mammography, low-dose CT lung cancer screening, colonoscopy screening, and timely treatment, remain inconsistent or insufficient in India.
“In order for India to alter its current path, it is imperative that we promptly enhance risk prevention strategies, broaden evidence-based screening programs, and incorporate cancer care into the framework of its universal health coverage agenda,” Shankar stated to the newspaper.
