Early-Onset CRC Incidence Rates Increased in 27 of 50 Countries, Territories

MONDAY, Dec. 23, 2024 (HealthDay News) — Early-onset colorectal cancer incidence rates are increasing in many countries and territories, according to a study published online Dec. 11 in The Lancet Oncology.

Hyuna Sung, Ph.D., from the American Cancer Society in Atlanta, and colleagues extracted colorectal cancer incidence data to examine trends in younger versus older adults. Age-standardized incidence rates per 100,000 person-years were calculated for early-onset (diagnosed between ages 25 and 49 years) and late-onset (diagnosed between 50 and 74 years) colorectal cancer using data until 2017 for 50 countries and territories.

The researchers found that in terms of average annual percentage changes (AAPCs), incidence rates of early-onset colorectal cancer were stable in 23 countries in the most recent 10 years but increased in 27 countries; the greatest annual increases were seen in New Zealand, Chile, Puerto Rico, and England (AAPCs, 3.97, 3.96, 3.81, and 3.59 percent, respectively). In older adults, 14 of the 27 countries and territories showed stable or decreasing incidence. In the 13 countries with increasing trends in both age groups, the average annual percentage increase was higher in younger than older adults in Chile, Japan, Sweden, the Netherlands, Croatia, and Finland; was lower in Thailand, France (Martinique), Denmark, and Costa Rica; and was similar in Türkiye, Ecuador, and Belarus.

“The increase in early-onset colorectal cancer, previously seen predominately in high-income western countries, has now been documented in various economies and regions worldwide,” the authors write. “The global reach of this alarming trend calls for innovative tools to prevent and control cancers linked to nutritional attributes, physical inactivity, and excess bodyweight, which might be more challenging to address than the tobacco epidemic.”

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