One in five people worldwide will develop cancer in their lifetime, and nearly everyone will feel its impact through a loved one, the WHO's 2026 global cancer report warns. With 20.6 million diagnoses in 2024 and cases projected to hit 35 million by 2050, survival still hinges starkly on wealth, ranging from over 85% in rich nations to under 45% in the poorest.
The World Health Organisation (WHO), in its Global status report on cancer 2026, said that one in five people would develop cancer during their lifetime.
The report, titled "The future we choose together," was prepared by WHO's Department of Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health along with the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
In the report's foreword, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus wrote that the data made clear that cancer was "an unfolding global crisis."
The scale of the burden
According to the report, 20.6 million people received a cancer diagnosis worldwide in 2024. This included 19.5 million new cancer cases, excluding non-melanoma skin cancer, of which 9.9 million were men and 9.6 million were women.
The number of new cancer diagnoses was projected to reach 35 million a year by 2050.
The report said cancer diagnoses affected not just patients but their families. When the impact on close family members was accounted for, nearly 92% of all people globally would be affected by cancer at least once in their lifetime, it said.
“An estimated 9.7 million deaths globally were attributable to cancer in 2024. Of all cancer deaths, over 4.8 million occurred among adults aged 30 to 69, representing a substantial burden of premature cancer mortality,” the report stated.
“Approximately one in nine men and one in 13 women will die from cancer before the age of 75 years old.”
Cancer contributed to about 16.5% of all global deaths, excluding COVID-19-related deaths, making it the second leading cause of death after cardiovascular disease.
“In men, the highest incidence was recorded for lung cancer (1.6 million cases), followed by prostate cancer (1.5 million cases). Among women, breast cancer had the highest incidence with 2.4 million new cases, followed by lung cancer with 1 million recorded cases,” the report noted.
“For either sex, colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer (1.1 million cases for men, 0.9 million cases for women),” according to the report.
The report also cited an estimated four lakh new cancers arising annually among children and adolescents aged 0 to 19 worldwide, with approximately 90% of these occurring in low- and middle-income countries.
On future projections, the report cited IARC estimates that project a 66.7% global increase in cancer incidence by 2050, based on projected population growth and ageing.
The greatest burden was projected in low-income countries at 133.3%, followed by lower-middle-income countries at 86.5%.
All WHO regions were projected to see a rise in cancer incidence, with the largest increases in the African and Eastern Mediterranean regions, at 125.2% and 109.8%, respectively.
A survival gap by income
The report highlighted differences in survival depending on income level. It said new WHO estimates of “breast and childhood cancer survival reveal the extent of global inequalities: in high-income countries (HICs), where cancers are more likely to be diagnosed early, five-year net survival now exceeds 85%; in low-income countries (LICs) it drops below 45%.”
For breast cancer specifically, the report said five-year net survival estimates were fourfold higher in many high-income countries than in some sub-Saharan African countries.
The median age-standardised five-year net survival from 2017 to 2021 was 39% in sub-Saharan Africa, with more than half of the region's countries not reaching 50%.
“WHO five-year net survival estimates for children diagnosed with lymphoid leukaemia report substantial improvement in global survival between 2000 and 2021. Overall, for the years 2017–2021, 104 (54%) among the 194 countries reached the 60% five-year survival for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia set up under the Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer (GICC),” The report stated.
The report tracked progress against Sustainable Development Goal target 3.4, which calls for a one-third reduction in premature mortality from noncommunicable diseases, including cancer, by 2030.
“Based on 2010–2019 data, only 12 countries are on track to meet the SDG 3.4 target to, by 2030, reduce by one-third premature mortality for all cancers. In contrast, 48 countries have rising rates of premature mortality from cancer linked to rising cancer burdens,” the report highlighted.
The cost burden on families and children
On the economic impact, the report projected the cumulative global economic cost of cancer would exceed US$33.2 trillion between 2020 and 2050.
It said, “The overall economic burden of cancer between 2020 and 2050 is equivalent to an annual tax of approximately 0.55% on global gross domestic product.”
“For individuals and families, cancer brings acute and often prolonged financial hardship due to high out-of-pocket costs, lost income, and the risk of catastrophic health expenditure: at household level, cancer is a leading driver of medical bankruptcy,” the study pointed out. “Even in countries with universal health coverage (UHC), indirect costs of cancer – loss of employment or productivity for people diagnosed with cancer and their caregivers, transportation costs, childcare – can be ruinous. Approximately half of patients and their families currently experience catastrophic health expenditures.’
The report also documented the impact of cancer deaths on children. Citing 2020 data, it said 4.4 million cancer deaths among women and 5.5 million cancer deaths among men left 1.04 million and 1.41 million children as maternal and paternal orphans, respectively.
Nearly half of new maternal orphans were in Asia, and more than a third were in Africa. Six countries together accounted for two-fifths of the worldwide total of maternal orphans: India, China, Nigeria, Indonesia, Ethiopia and Pakistan.
Where prevention is falling short
The report cited prior studies on diagnostic infrastructure showing that sub-Saharan Africa had roughly one pathologist per one million people, about 50 times fewer than the ratio in high-income countries.
The report said nearly 40% of new cancer cases were preventable by reducing exposure to modifiable risk factors.
“Implementation of tobacco control policies under the WHO Framework Convention for Tobacco Control (FCTC) has contributed to a 27% reduction in the prevalence of tobacco use since 2010, but incomplete delivery of recommended implementation measures known as MPOWER2 contributes to ongoing tobacco use,” the report said.
For cervical cancer, the report said. 85% of countries had integrated human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination into their national immunisation programmes.
“Coverage with the first dose of HPV among girls is now estimated at 31%. While far from the target of 90% by 2030, it represents moderate progress from the 17% coverage in 2019,” it added.
The report said only 28% of countries included a minimum cancer management package in their universal health coverage benefit packages.
High out-of-pocket costs in low- and middle-income countries contributed to up to 90% of people being unable to complete treatment appropriately in some settings, the report said.
The report concluded with seven recommendations organised around three shifts: better capabilities, better protections and better value in global cancer control.
These included embedding cancer control within health system strengthening, including people with lived experience in cancer-related decision-making, and aligning research and innovation with the service needs of low- and middle-income countries.
This story is done in collaboration with First Check, which is the health journalism vertical of DataLEADS
