Australia and NZ Lead in Global Breast Cancer Rates

A recent study has found that Australia and New Zealand have the highest breast cancer incidence rates worldwide. Conducted by researchers from Australia and Canada, the study analyzed breast cancer incidence and mortality across 185 countries. The findings indicate that one in 20 women globally will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, while one in 70 will die from the disease. The study underscores global disparities in breast cancer risk, with incidence rates significantly higher in developed nations and mortality disproportionately affecting lower Human Development Index (HDI) countries.

Key Findings

Incidence Rates

• Highest Incidence Rates: Australia and New Zealand have the highest breast cancer incidence, followed by Northern America and Northern Europe.
• Lowest Incidence Rates: South-Central Asia recorded the lowest incidence rates.

Age-Standardized Incidence Rate (ASIR) (2022)

• Australia & New Zealand: 100.3 cases per 100,000 people.
• South-Central Asia: 26.7 cases per 100,000 people.
• Mortality Rates: Highest in Melanesia (26.8 deaths per 100,000 people), followed by Polynesia and Western Africa. The lowest is in Eastern Asia (6.5 deaths per 100,000 people).
• Major Risk Factors: Ageing populations, alcohol consumption, low physical activity, and obesity.

Country-Specific Trends

• France: Highest lifetime risk of breast cancer diagnosis.
• Fiji: Highest lifetime risk of breast cancer mortality.

Projected Increase by 2050

• Cases: Expected to rise by 38%.
• Deaths: Predicted to increase by 68%, disproportionately affecting low-HDI nations.

Global Breast Cancer Initiative (GBCI) (WHO, 2021)

• Goal: Reduce breast cancer mortality by 2.5% annually.
• Only seven countries (Malta, Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland, Lithuania, Netherlands, and Slovenia) have achieved this target.
• Australia & New Zealand have reduced mortality by 2.1% annually in the last decade.

Call for Action

• Researchers emphasize the urgent need to address global disparities in breast cancer survival rates.
• Policies must focus on prevention, early detection, and treatment accessibility in low-HDI countries.