Global Burden of 5 Major Types of Gastrointestinal Cancer

Abstract

BACKGROUND & AIMS There were an estimated 4.8 million new cases of gastrointestinal (GI) cancers and 3.4 million related deaths, worldwide, in 2018. GI cancers account for 26% of the global cancer incidence and 35% of all cancer-related deaths. We investigated the global burden from the 5 major GI cancers as well as geographic and temporal trends in cancer-specific incidence and mortality. METHODS Data on primary cancers of the esophagus, stomach, colorectum, liver, and pancreas were extracted from the GLOBOCAN database for the year 2018, as well as from the Cancer Incidence in 5 Continents series, and the World Health Organization mortality database from 1960 onward. Age-standardized incidence and mortality rates were calculated by sex, country, and level of human development. RESULTS We observed geographic and temporal variations in incidence and mortality for all 5 types of GI cancers. Esophageal, gastric, and liver cancers were more common in Asia than in other parts of the world, whereas of the burden from colorectal and pancreatic cancers was highest in Europe and North America. There was a uniform decrease in gastric cancer incidence but an increasing incidence of colorectal cancer in formerly low-incidence regions over the studied time period. We found slight increases in incidence of liver and pancreatic cancer in some high-income regions. CONCLUSIONS Although the incidence of some GI cancer types has decreased, this group of malignancies continues to pose major challenges to public health. Primary and secondary prevention measures are important for controlling these malignancies-most importantly reducing consumption of tobacco and alcohol, obesity control, immunizing populations against hepatitis B virus infection, and screening for colorectal cancer.

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Affiliated Institutions

• Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics
• Harvard University US
• Centre international de recherche sur le cancer FR
• QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute AU
• National Cancer Institute US

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