Recent mortality rates decreased for major cancers in most of 47 studied countries, apart from lung cancer in women and liver cancer in men, according to a study published online May 9 in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.
Ephrem Sedeta, M.D., from the Brookdale University Hospital Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, and colleagues examined recent patterns and trends in cancer mortality rates for eight common forms of cancer in 47 countries across five continents.
The researchers observed substantial variation in cancer-specific mortality rates across countries, with 10-fold variation seen in rates of infection-related (cervix and stomach) and tobacco-related cancers (lung and esophagus). For all major cancers, recent mortality rates decreased in most of the countries studied, with the exception of lung cancer in women and liver cancer in men, which increased in most countries. Rates of lung cancer in men and stomach cancer in both sexes decreased or stabilized in all countries.
“There is limited published data on recent cancer mortality trends worldwide,” Sedeta said in a statement. “The findings based on the up-to-date cancer mortality data may help set priorities for national and international cancer control efforts and in so doing, reduce the marked global cancer disparities observed today.”
