WHO Delivers Grim News: 1 in 5 People Worldwide at Risk of Cancer

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that one in five people will develop cancer, with the disease set to touch the lives of 92 per cent of people, either through a personal diagnosis or that of a close family member. “For years, the story told about cancer has been one of scientific progress, new technologies, new treatments, and new hope. That story is true and worth telling, but it is not the whole story,” said Dr Andre Ilbawi, head of the cancer control team at WHO. The WHO’s global status report on cancer this year found persistent and widening inequities in access to prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and care. An estimated 20.6 million new cases and 10 million deaths from cancer occur each year, with figures projected to surge to nearly 35 million cases by 2050. In wealthier countries, 85 per cent of those diagnosed with breast cancer or childhood cancer will survive for at least five years, but that figure plummets to less than 30 per cent in poorer nations. The report found that in low- and lower-middle-income countries, only between 9 per cent and 54 per cent of the WHO’s top 20 priority cancer medicines are available, compared to between 68 per cent and 94 per cent in high-income countries. In 23 countries, there are no radiation facilities at all. Diagnosis rates in sub-Saharan Africa are lower than in wealthier regions, yet cancer mortality rates there are disproportionately high. Two-thirds of countries do not include cancer in their health benefit packages, and crippling costs force up to 90 per cent of patients in some regions to abandon treatment, the report stated. A global survey of patients and families revealed widespread financial hardship, mental health challenges, and severe strain on caregivers. Abigail Simon-Hart, a breast cancer survivor and patient advocate from Nigeria, said she has witnessed these challenges firsthand. “Parents must choose between paying for treatment or keeping their children in school, and children are forced to drop out because every available resource is spent on cancer care,” she said. Simon-Hart added that in some places, societal stigma surrounding a cancer diagnosis can be fatal, noting she has met women who chose to lose their lives rather than lose their breasts to a mastectomy. The report also highlighted successes, including a credible pathway to eliminating cervical cancer and a downward trend in tobacco consumption. Most countries now have a national action plan for cancer control. Dr Isabelle Soerjomataram, Deputy Head of the Surveillance Unit at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), who co-authored the report, added further good news. “Four in ten new cancer cases are actually triggered by risk factors we already know how to address, such as smoking, infections, alcohol consumption, and excess body weight,” she said.