Cancer risk is increasing in developing countries

A report by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the World Health Organization warns that the number of people with cancer is expected to increase by about 22 million in the next 10 years. And developing countries will face a high risk of cancer.

According to the report, in 2012 alone, 14.1 million people were diagnosed with cancer, and 8.2 million died from cancer. One in five men and one in six women will develop cancer before the age of 75. And one in eight men and one in 12 women will die from cancer.

The report also warns that Africa, Asia, Central and South America are home to 60% of new cancer cases, and account for about 70% of cancer deaths worldwide.

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The report calls for a focus on cancer prevention by tackling smoking, alcohol abuse and obesity. In most countries, breast cancer is the most common cancer among women. However, in Africa, it is mainly cervical cancer.

“In low- and middle-income countries, it is difficult for governments to commit to strengthening regulatory measures to protect people and implementing cancer prevention plans,” said report co-author Dr Bernard W Stewart.

The IARC report was prepared by 250 scientists from more than 40 countries around the world. In 2010 alone, the world spent about 1.16 billion USD on cancer treatment.

“We need more efforts to improve cancer treatment, but also more efforts to prevent the disease,” said IARC Director Dr Christopher Wild. “We know a lot about the causes of cancer, and we know how to detect it early, but we don’t often see this translated into effective cancer control policies at the national level.”

According to NDĐT