In 2022 they were estimated 20 million cases of cancer in the world and 9.7 million deaths, A growing burden hiding what the WHO calls “striking inequality” between rich and poor countries.

About one in five people develop cancer in their lifetime, and one in nine men and one in 12 women die from the disease, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) says in a statement.

But the threat of cancer varies depending on where the patient lives, IARC points out in its biennial report, which is based on data from 185 countries for 36 cancers.

For example, in the most developed countries, one in 12 women develops breast cancer during her lifetime, but only one in 71 women dies from this disease.

In countries lower on the Human Development Index, one in 27 women is affected by breast cancer -partly because populations tend to be younger, but also as a result of lower exposure to risk factors such as a woman being overweight- but one in 48 women die from it.

Women in these countries “are less likely to be diagnosed (with the disease) … however, they are much more at risk of dying from it due to late diagnosis and lack of access to quality treatment,” says Isabel Serjomataram, deputy director of IARC’s cancer surveillance branch.

IARC also reported that different types of cancer are increasingly affecting populations as lifestyles change. For example, colon cancer is now the third most common cancer and the second leading cause of death. Colorectal cancer is particularly associated with age, but also with lifestyle factors such as obesity, as well as smoking and alcohol consumption.

However, lung cancer has also re-emerged as the most common cancer and leading cause of death, with 2.5 million new cases and 1.8 million deaths annually. IARC says this is likely linked to persistently high rates of smoking in Asia.

While the restrictions associated with the Covid-19 pandemic have had an impact on cancer diagnosis and in the care of cancer patients, the data so far – which mostly come only from high-income countries – show little impact on survival rates, the agency added at a news conference.

The IARC said that by 2050 there will likely be a 77% increase in cases, to 35 million, as the population grows and ages. But the impact will be uneven: in poorer countries, cases will rise by 142 percent, the agency said, and death rates will double.