Tobacco, Unhealthy Diet, and High Blood Sugar Drive Global Cancer Deaths – The Lancet

A new study published by The Lancet, a leading peer-reviewed medical journal, has identified tobacco use, poor diet, and high blood sugar as the top causes of cancer deaths worldwide. The report, released on Wednesday, underscores the urgent need for stronger public health interventions, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.

According to the study, breast cancer was the most prevalent form of cancer affecting both men and women in 2023. Experts noted that men who smoke and consume alcohol are at heightened risk, while women face greater vulnerability from obesity and unsafe sexual practices.

Globally, 18.5 million new cancer cases were recorded in 2023, with 10.4 million deaths. Alarmingly, the study found that 42% of these deaths could have been prevented by avoiding tobacco, unhealthy diets, and other modifiable risk factors.

“A greater proportion of global cancer deaths in men (46%) in 2023 were linked to potentially modifiable risk factors — primarily tobacco, poor diet, high alcohol use, occupational hazards, and air pollution — compared to women (36%), for whom the leading risks were tobacco, unsafe sex, unhealthy diet, obesity, and high blood sugar,” the study stated.

While age-adjusted cancer death rates are declining in many developed nations, researchers warned that low- and middle-income countries face rising incidence and mortality unless urgent health policies are enacted. The report projects 30.5 million new cancer cases and 18.6 million deaths annually by 2050, with at least half occurring in resource-limited nations — a setback to the UN Sustainable Development Goals on reducing premature deaths from non-communicable diseases.

“Cancer remains an important contributor to global disease burden, and our study highlights how it is anticipated to grow substantially over the coming decades, with disproportionate growth in countries with limited resources,” said lead author Lisa Force of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.

Between 1990 and 2023, Lebanon recorded the highest cancer incidence and mortality rates for both genders, while the UAE posted the sharpest decline in new cases and Kazakhstan saw the largest reduction in mortality rates.

Force urged governments to act decisively: “These projections should inform the development of data-driven policies to improve cancer control and outcomes globally. They can also support tracking of progress toward international cancer targets.”