Breast cancer surpasses lung cancer as the most commonly diagnosed cancer worldwideBashar, MD Abu; Begam, Nazia1

As per the latest global cancer burden estimates from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a specialized agency for cancer research of World Health Organization (WHO), breast cancer now tops the list of the most commonly diagnosed cancers worldwide, surpassing lung cancer for the first time.[¹]

The global cancer burden has been estimated to have risen to 19.3 million new cases and 10.0 million deaths in 2020.[²] One in 5 people globally develop cancer during their lifetime, and one in 8 men and one in 11 women are dying from the disease. Similarly, the total number of people who are alive within 5 years of a cancer diagnosis – called the 5-year prevalence – is estimated to be 50.6 million worldwide.[²]

The 10 most common cancer types account for more than 60% of the total newly diagnosed cancer cases and more than 70% of the total cancer deaths.[¹] Female breast cancer is the most commonly occurring cancer worldwide (11.7% of the total new cases), followed by lung cancer (11.4%), colorectal cancer (10.0%), prostate cancer (7.3%), and stomach cancer (5.6%). Lung cancer is still the leading cause of cancer death (18.0% of the total cancer deaths), followed by colorectal cancer (9.4%), liver cancer (8.3%), stomach cancer (7.7%), and female breast cancer (6.9%).[¹] In men, lung cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer (14.3% of all diagnosed cancers in males) and the leading cause of cancer deaths (21.5% of all cancer deaths in males), followed by prostate cancer and colorectal cancer for incidence and liver cancer and colorectal cancer for mortality. In women, breast cancer is the most diagnosed cancer and the leading cause of cancer death, followed by colorectal cancer and lung cancer for incidence and lung cancer and colorectal cancer for mortality.[¹]