The largest study of its type projects an 85% rise in disease-related fatalities within the same time span as more men live longer. According to the largest study of its type, the number of men worldwide receiving a prostate cancer diagnosis is expected to double to 2.9 million year by 2040, and the number of fatalities associated with the disease would grow by 85%.
Prostate cancer is the most frequent type of cancer in men across 100 countries and already a major cause of death and disability. However, given that life expectancy is rising and populations are ageing worldwide, a recent estimate predicts a sharp increase in cases and fatalities during the next 15 years.
It is anticipated that the number of diagnoses will rise from 1.4 million in 2020 to 2.9 million by 2040, resulting in approximately 330 males receiving a diagnosis each hour.
Global mortality is expected to increase by 85% during the next 20 years, from 375,000 in 2020 to nearly 700,000 by 2040. Experts predict that due of under diagnosis and missing data in low- and middle-income nations, the true death toll will likely be greater.
The results, which were a component of the Lancet’s historic commission on prostate cancer, will be revealed on Saturday at the annual congress of the European Association of Urology in Paris.
The number of elderly men living longer is rising globally due to ageing demographics and rising life expectancy. Because the primary risk factors for prostate cancer—being 50 years of age or older and having a family history of the condition—cannot be avoided, experts claim that changing one’s lifestyle or implementing public health initiatives alone won’t be enough to stop the recent increase in cases.
The 40-page report’s authors do, however, believe that greater understanding of the disease’s symptoms, accessibility to testing programs, early identification, and advancements in treatment options could still help lessen the burden and save lives.
“As more and more men around the world live to middle and old age, there will be an inevitable rise in the number of prostate cancer cases,” said Prof Nick James, the lead author of the study. “We know this surge in cases is coming, so we need to start planning and take action now.”
“Evidence-based interventions, such as improved early detection and education programmes, will help to save lives and prevent ill health from prostate cancer in the years to come,” added James, a professor of prostate cancer research at the Institute of Cancer Research, London, and a consultant clinical oncologist at the Royal Marsden NHS foundation trust.
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