(Press-News.org) The number of cancer cases and deaths in Canada is expected to increase because of a growing and aging population, but the overall rates of people being diagnosed with and dying from cancer will continue to decline, according to the latest cancer trends research in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.240095.
The study is the result of a collaboration between the Canadian Cancer Society, Statistics Canada, and the Public Health Agency of Canada. It provides estimates of the number and rate of new cancer cases and deaths in 2024 for 23 cancer types by province or territory, and sex. This is a major update with the inclusion of data from Quebec that provides more accurate national estimates.
“Cancer has a major impact on the people and the economy of Canada. These estimates highlight where progress has been made to reduce those impacts, and where more attention and resources are needed,” says lead author Dr. Darren Brenner, an epidemiologist and associate professor at the Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary.
When adjusting for our aging population, overall incidence and mortality rates are projected to decrease slightly from previous years for both males and females, and are projected to continue to decrease for some of the most common cancers, including lung, colorectal, and prostate. Meanwhile, incidence rates of cancers that are less common, including liver and intrahepatic bile duct cancer, kidney cancer, melanoma, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, are projected to increase.
Key points:
Cancer is still the number one cause of death in Canada (about 25% in 2022)
It is projected there will be 247 100 new cancer diagnoses and 88 100 cancer deaths in 2024. This is up from an estimated 239 100 cancer cases and 86 700 cancer deaths in 2023
Lung cancer is projected to be the most diagnosed cancer, with 32 100 new cases, and remains the leading cause of cancer death for both males and females in 2024 (20 700)
Breast (30 800 cases), prostate (27 900), and colorectal (25 200) cancers are projected to be the next most common cancers
The top four cancers (lung, breast, prostate, and colorectal) are expected to make up almost half (47%) of all new cases
Rates of cancer mortality are higher in eastern Canada compared with western Canada
Cancer mortality rates are expected to be 37% higher in males than in females
More people are surviving cancer, with an estimated 1.5 million in Canada living with and beyond cancer 25 years after diagnosis
The authors adjusted for differences in ages to ensure comparisons across populations with different age structures (age-standardized incidence rate). The term “age-standardized” refers to a statistical approach that allows for comparison between populations with different age structures and population sizes, as well as comparisons over time.
“This growing population of cancer survivors, combined with the projected annual increase in the total number of new primary cancers in 2024, will have a substantial impact on Canadian health care systems, given ongoing needs of people with a history of cancer,” write the authors. “The increase in the number of cancer survivors will require both additional investment and innovation to provide necessary supports.”
The authors provide projected rates and counts of new cancer cases by region and cancer type in Appendix 2.
"The 2024 cancer projections tell a complex story, one where we can point to progress among some of the most common cancer types, but also where those less common cancers are projected to increase,” says Dr. Jennifer Gillis, senior manager of surveillance at the Canadian Cancer Society and coauthor of the study. "While the overall cancer incidence rate continues to decline, likely due to continued efforts in cancer prevention and screening, it’s concerning to see incidence rates of certain cancers like liver, kidney, melanoma, head and neck, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma on the rise. It tells us we need to continue to research these areas and push for public policies that will help drive those rates back down.”
In a related editorial https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.240612, Dr. Keerat Grewal, a clinician scientist at the Schwartz/Reisman Emergency Medicine Institute at Sinai Health, Toronto, and Dr. Catherine Varner, deputy editor, CMAJ, write, “Receiving a diagnosis of cancer in an emergency department is becoming routine in Canada, which highlights the failure of health care systems to support adequate primary care–initiated pathways for diagnosis of suspected cancer. One in 5 people in Canada do not have a regular primary care provider and, even among those who do, many report poor access to primary care.”
They suggest expanding access to outpatient clinics that streamline suspected cancer diagnoses, like Ontario’s diagnostic assessment program clinics, and offering navigation support for patients discharged from the emergency department with a cancer diagnosis.
“Continued efforts to increase awareness of early cancer symptoms, reduce barriers to cancer screening, and increase capacity for its early diagnosis in primary care and hospitals are critical. To lose the gains made in cancer outcomes to the overcrowding, fragmentation, and inefficiencies of health care systems would be a tragic shame,” conclude Drs. Grewal and Varner.
END
Projected estimates of cancer in Canada in 2024
2024-05-13
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Private health plans paid hospitals 254% of what Medicare would pay during 2022
2024-05-13
Prices paid to hospitals during 2022 by employers and private insurers for both inpatient and outpatient services averaged 254% of what Medicare would have paid, with wide variation in prices among states, according to a new RAND report.
Some states (Arkansas, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi) had relative prices under 200% of Medicare, while other states (California, Florida, Georgia, New York, South Carolina, West Virginia, Wisconsin) had relative prices that were above 300% of Medicare.
Even as the number of hospitals and insurance claims analyzed has grown across multiple rounds of the RAND Hospital ...
World-first regulations to combat sedentary behaviour among children in China show global promise
2024-05-13
Pioneering measures to tackle sedentary behaviour among children in China have proved effective, according to new research.
The study, led by the University of Bristol, reveals regulations recently introduced by the Chinese government to reduce school children’s sedentary behaviour by restricting online gaming companies catering for this age group, limiting the amount of homework schoolteachers can assign, and curtailing when private tuition businesses can provide lessons, significantly reduced total sedentary time as well as how long they spent on different sedentary activities. The measures were associated with a 13.8% daily sedentary drop overall, ...
Randomized trial reveals anti-inflammatory power of aerobic exercise in adults with obesity—helping to mitigate risks of metabolic diseases
2024-05-13
New research being presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Venice, Italy (12-15 May), reveals the anti-inflammatory power of moderate-to-vigorous aerobic exercise in adults living with the low-grade inflammation of obesity, shedding light on its potential to help prevent multiple metabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes and atherosclerosis (clogged arteries).
Excessive fat accumulation in adipose tissue (fat cells) leads to chronic low-grade inflammation, characterised by chronically elevated levels of ...
UK study in over 80,000 adults finds smokers tend to eat less and have a less healthy diet than non-smokers
2024-05-13
New research being presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Venice, Italy (12-15 May), suggests that smokers tend to eat less and have less healthy eating habits than non-smokers, which could help explain why smokers often gain weight when they quit.
The study, involving over 80,000 UK adults, underscores the importance of providing nutritional and weight management support to smokers, particularly those who are attempting to quit smoking.
People who smoke typically have a lower body weight and body mass index (BMI) than their non-smoking counterparts, ...
Source of sugar may be more important than amount when it comes to the development of obesity in children
2024-05-13
New research being presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) in Venice, Italy (12-15 May) suggests that the source of sugar is more important than the amount of sugar when it comes to the development of obesity in children.
The study found that the total amount of sugar consumed when very young was not associated with weight at age 10 or 11.
However, children who got a higher proportion of their sugar from unsweetened liquid dairy products (milk and buttermilk) were less likely to go on to live with overweight or obesity.
Similarly, getting more sugar from fruit was associated with less weight gain. However, getting a lot of sugar ...
Heart failure patients who do yoga have stronger hearts and can be more active
2024-05-12
Lisbon, Portugal – 12 May 2024: Yoga focused on breathing, meditation, and relaxation is linked with symptom improvement in patients with heart failure, according to research presented today at Heart Failure 2024, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).1
“Patients who practised yoga on top of taking their medications felt better, were able to do more, and had stronger hearts than those who only took drugs for their heart failure,” said study author Dr. Ajit Singh of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Manipal Academy of Higher Education, India. “The findings suggest that yoga can be ...
CSUFT-led team creates novel flame-retardant, smoke-suppressing, and superhydrophobic transparent bamboo for future glasses
2024-05-12
Professors Yiqiang Wu and Caichao Wan, along with their team from Central South University of Forestry and Technology (CSUFT), have pioneered a groundbreaking transparent material derived from natural bamboo. This innovative material features a three-layered flame-retardant barrier, effectively reducing heat release, slowing flame spread, and restraining the emission of combustible volatiles, toxic smoke, and CO. Their findings have been documented in the journal Research.
Silica glass, a widely used transparent material in the construction industry, ...
An auxiliary CHD diagnostic system based on multi-view and multi-modal transthoracic echocardiograms
2024-05-12
Congenital heart disease (CHD) is one of the most common congenital anomalies worldwide, which brings a heavy health and financial burden to patients. Early CHD screening and treatment can significantly improve children’s prognosis and quality of life. However, inexperienced sonographers often face difficulties in recognizing CHD through transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) images. An auxiliary CHD screening system that allows inexperienced sonographers and general practitioners to perform TTE in a simple and easy-to-use way, thereby improving the CHD screening rate and scope, is urgently needed.
An Anhui Medical University, National Center for Children's Health and National Research ...
Researchers show genetic variant common among Black Americans contributes to large cardiovascular disease burden
2024-05-12
Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Duke University showed that a genetic variant, present in 3-4% of self-identified Black individuals in the U.S., increases the risk for both heart failure and death and contributes to significant decreases in longevity at the population level
A genetic variant carried by 3-4 percent of self-identified Black Americans increases the risk for heart failure and death, contributing to a significant decrease in longevity at the population level, according to a new study led by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, and Duke University School of Medicine. The ...
Cardiovascular burden of the V142I transthyretin variant
2024-05-12
About The Study: Among self-reported Black individuals, male and female V142I carriers faced similar and substantial risk for heart failure hospitalization, predominantly with reduced ejection fraction, and death, with steep age-dependent penetrance. Delineating the individual contributions of, and complex interplay among, the V142I variant, ancestry, the social construct of race, and biological or social determinants of health to cardiovascular disease merits further investigation.
Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Scott D. Solomon, M.D., email ssolomon@rics.bwh.harvard.edu.
To access the ...