Global estimates point to rising breast cancer burden and persistent disparities

Evidence before this study

A search of the current literature was conducted to identify scientific journal articles, using the keywords “breast”, “cancer”, “neoplasm”, or “malignancy” and “global”, “regional”, or “worldwide” and “statistics”, “epidemiology”, or “policy” and “burden”, “mortality”, “incidence”, or “prevalence” in PubMed, from database inception to March 9, 2025, in English. Nearly 500 articles were identified. Among these, approximately 40% focused on a single country, 20% on regional estimates, and 40% on global estimates. One source of global estimates for breast cancer is GLOBOCAN, which reports incidence, prevalence, and mortality estimates for 185 countries, the most recent of which is for the year 2022. Another major source of global cancer results is the CONCORD programme, which focuses on survival estimates. The most recent CONCORD-3 study presented female breast cancer 5-year net survival estimates for 71 countries from 2000 to 2014.

To date, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study is the primary global resource providing the most recent, comprehensive global annual estimates of breast cancer disease burden, extending beyond incidence, prevalence, and mortality to capture years of life lost, years lived with disability, and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) by age, sex, and location, from 1990 to 2023, with forecasts to 2050. National-level, regional-level, and global-level literature has consistently documented geographical disparities in the incidence and outcomes of breast cancer. Survival continues to improve in high-income countries, with corresponding declines in mortality, whereas barriers to access to quality care and delayed diagnosis in low-income settings contribute to poor prognosis and higher mortality rates.

Added value of this study

This study provides the most recent global estimates of breast cancer incidence, mortality, and DALYs and presents the forecasted burden to 2050. Together, these measures underscore the evolving epidemiological patterns and the geographical disparities in breast cancer disease burden over time. Furthermore, the risk factor analysis presented in this study reveals both the current and emerging drivers of breast cancer trends, highlighting potential opportunities for prevention and early intervention.

Implications of all the available evidence

The escalating burden of breast cancer, especially in low-income and middle-income countries, results in substantial health losses due to premature mortality and disability among females, threatening to eclipse some of the progress achieved in maternal and women's health over the past several decades. Uneven distribution of breast cancer stage at diagnosis, compounded by inequitable access to health-care services, probably amplifies global health disparities in this disease. Collaborative and united efforts are required to mitigate the rising challenges.

Source: The Lancet Oncology