There is a gap in the literature on global estimates of risk-attributable cancer burden for a comprehensive list of risk factors that incorporate both cancer-related mortality and disability. We searched titles and abstracts in PubMed for English-language research papers that were published between Jan 1, 2010, and June 1, 2021, using the search terms “cancer or neoplasm or tumor or malignancy” and “risk factor or attributable risk or population attributable fraction” and “global or international or worldwide or world” and “burden or metrics or incidence or mortality”, but did not identify additional informative studies.

One previous comparative risk assessment project estimated risk-attributable cancer mortality for nine risk factors.

The Global Cancer Observatory also provides estimates of cancer-attributable burden for select risk factor categories separately. We identified previous work that primarily estimated the attributable cancer burden for single risk factors globally or multiple risk factors for single countries. From 2010 to 2019, global risk-attributable cancer deaths increased by 20♴% (12♶–28♴) and DALYs by 16♸% (8♸–25♰), with the greatest percentage increase in metabolic risks (34♷% and 33♳% ). Risk-attributable cancer burden varied by world region and Socio-demographic Index (SDI), with smoking, unsafe sex, and alcohol use being the three leading risk factors for risk-attributable cancer DALYs in low SDI locations in 2019, whereas DALYs in high SDI locations mirrored the top three global risk factor rankings. The leading risk factors at the most detailed level globally for risk-attributable cancer deaths and DALYs in 2019 for both sexes combined were smoking, followed by alcohol use and high BMI. There were 2♸8 million (2♶0–3♱8) risk-attributable cancer deaths in males (50♶% of all male cancer deaths) and 1♵8 million (1♳6–1♸4) risk-attributable cancer deaths in females (36♳% of all female cancer deaths). Globally, in 2019, the risk factors included in this analysis accounted for 4♴5 million (95% uncertainty interval 4♰1–4♹4) deaths and 105 million (95♰–116) DALYs for both sexes combined, representing 44♴% (41♳–48♴) of all cancer deaths and 42♰% (39♱–45♶) of all DALYs. The Lancet Regional Health – Western Pacific.The Lancet Regional Health – Southeast Asia.The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology.

Preventing Cancer by Joseph Veebe