Objective This study aims to analyze the current epidemiological status of cancer in China and worldwide, based on global cancer statistics released by GLOBOCAN 2024. MethodsCancer incidence and mortality data stratified by age, sex, cancer site, human development index (HDI) tier and geographic region were extracted from the GLOBOCAN 2024 database. Indicators including incidence, mortality rates were compared between China and the world. ResultsGlobally, there were an estimated 20.637 million new cases and 9.763 million cancer deaths in 2024. The age-standardized incidence rate (ASIR) was 194.9 per 100 000 and the age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) was 87.8 per 100 000 in 2024. The age specific incidence rate and mortality rate both increased with age. The ASIR of all cancers increased with the increase of HDI, peaking at 279.6 per 100 000 in very high HDI regions. The ASMR of all cancers was highest in very high HDI regions (92.2 per 100 000) and lowest in medium HDI regions (68.6 per 100 000). The top five most commonly diagnosed cancers worldwide were lung, breast, colorectal, prostate and stomach cancer, while the five leading causes of cancer death globally were lung, colorectal, liver, breast and stomach cancer. Globally, men exhibited higher numbers of new cases, ASIR, death counts and ASMR compared with women. Lung cancer ranked first in both incidence and mortality among men, whereas breast cancer was the leading cancer in terms of incidence and mortality among women. In China, there were an estimated 5.151 million new cases and 2.582 million cancer deaths. The ASIR was 207.7 per 100 000 and the ASMR was 90.9 per 100 000 in 2024. The ASIR and ASMR in China ranked 63rd and 66th respectively across 186 countries. The five commonly diagnosed cancers in China were lung, thyroid, colorectal, breast and liver cancer, while the five leading causes of cancer death in China were lung, liver, colorectal, stomach and esophageal cancer. ConclusionsThe global cancer burden remains substantial, with marked disparities in cancer spectra across regions at varying levels of development. New cases and deaths from cancer in China accounted for approximately a quarter of the global total, with the incidence and mortality burden of cancers such as lung, liver and colorectal cancer being particularly pronounced, reflecting a situation where the cancer profiles of both developing and developed countries coexist. Analyzing China’s cancer burden can provide scientific evidence to inform the development of cancer prevention and control strategies tailored to national conditions.
