Overview
- New analysis in The Lancet Oncology forecasts annual cases increasing from about 2.3 million in 2023 to more than 3.5 million by 2050, with deaths rising 44% to nearly 1.4 million.
- In high-income countries, age‑standardised mortality fell roughly 30% since 1990, but it nearly doubled in the lowest‑income countries as incidence in those settings climbed about 147%.
- Although low‑ and lower‑middle‑income countries account for roughly 27% of new cases, they bear more than 45% of the global loss of healthy life from breast cancer.
- About 28% of the global burden is linked to modifiable risks such as obesity, high blood sugar, tobacco (including secondhand smoke), alcohol, low physical activity and high red‑meat intake.
- The study highlights faster growth in cases among women aged 20–54 and details critical care gaps in many low‑resource health systems, including shortages of radiotherapy, chemotherapy and pathology services.