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According to a study backed by Cancer Research UK, India and six other nations account for 1.3 million annual deaths due to tobacco-induced cancers. These countries, including the UK, US, Brazil, Russia, China, and South Africa, collectively contribute to over half of the global cancer fatalities yearly.
Researchers from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), Queen Mary University of London (QMUL), and King’s College London highlighted that apart from smoking, alcohol consumption, obesity, and HPV infections lead to nearly 2 million combined deaths. Their analysis revealed an annual loss of over 30 million years of life due to these preventable risk factors, with smoking causing the largest impact of 20.8 million years lost.
The study underscores a concerning trend of rising cancer cases in low- and middle-income nations. Projections suggest a potential 400% surge in new cancer cases, reaching 3.1 million annually in low-income countries over the next five decades. Even high-income countries like the UK may witness a 50% increase in the same period.
Ian Walker, executive director of policy and information at Cancer Research UK, emphasized the need for global action to save millions of lives from preventable cancers, especially through measures targeting tobacco use.
Published in eClinicalMedicine, the study revealed concerning patterns in India, where premature deaths from head and neck cancer in men and gynecological cancer in women are higher. This disparity is partly due to differences in cervical screening between India, the UK, and the US, resulting in more premature deaths in India linked to HPV-related gynecological cancers.
Additionally, differences in smoking habits, including the use of different tobacco products, may contribute to more years of life lost to head and neck cancer in Indian men compared to their counterparts in the UK.
The study also highlighted gender discrepancies, with significantly higher rates of years of life lost to tobacco and alcohol in men compared to women in India, China, and Russia. Conversely, obesity and HPV infections led to more cancer deaths and life years lost in women than men.
In India specifically, the disparity in years of life lost to HPV infection is 11 times higher in women than men, underscoring the critical need for improved access to cervical screening and HPV vaccination programs in these countries.
