A Lancet Commission on women and cancer

Abstract

Over the past decade, the global health community has begun to acknowledge that cancer is an increasingly important public health and economic challenge in all countries. 1 Knaul FM Gralow JR Atun R Bhadelia A Closing the cancer divide: an equity imperative. Harvard University Press, North Andover, MA2012 Google Scholar What is not acknowledged is the disproportionate impact of cancer on the lives and livelihoods of women, and the downstream impacts this creates for societies. In 104 countries, breast cancer has the highest age-standardised incidence rate of all cancers in both sexes combined; in 23 countries, it is cervical cancer. 2 Ferlay J Ervik M Lam F et al. Global Cancer Observatory: Cancer today. International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France2018https://gco.iarc.fr/todayDate accessed: June 24, 2020 Google Scholar Of the 938 044 deaths from these two cancers in 2018, most were premature and preventable and occurred in a low-income or middle-income countries (LMICs), where access to high-quality cancer control and care is limited and inequitable. 3 Bray F Ferlay J Soerjomataram I Siegel RL Torre LA Jemal A Global cancer statistics 2018: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2018; 68: 394-424 Crossref PubMed Scopus (38105) Google Scholar , 4 Ginsburg O Bray F Coleman MP et al. The global burden of women's cancers: a grand challenge in global health. Lancet. 2017; 389: 847-860 Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (412) Google Scholar Of the 311 365 women who died of cervical cancer in 2018, nearly nine in ten lived in LMICs. 2 Ferlay J Ervik M Lam F et al. Global Cancer Observatory: Cancer today. International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France2018https://gco.iarc.fr/todayDate accessed: June 24, 2020 Google Scholar