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Male cancer deaths expected to increase by 93% by 2050, with older men at greater risk
A global study published in the American Cancer Society predicts that, by 2050, global cancer cases among men will increase by 84%, with deaths jumping up by an even greater percentage. Men aged 65 and over, and those living in relatively poor, underdeveloped countries will see a greater than two-fold increase in cancer prevalence in the next three decades.
Investigators arrived at these startling results by analyzing 2022 information from the Global Cancer Observatory. They derived their predictions by multiplying age-specific rates of 30 different types of cancer by their corresponding population projections for 2050. Men face higher rates of cancer than women, because they smoke and drink more, work in more hazardous environments, screen themselves less diligently, and participate less in cancer prevention activities.
Cancer rates and deaths among men will almost ‘double’ by 2050
The cancer burden among men is predicted to increase by 84%, between 2022 and 2050, according to research published in August 2024 by the American Cancer Society.
That percentage represents an increase from 10.3 million to 19 million. Meanwhile, deaths will increase from 5.4 million to 10.5 million a 93% increase according to the projections.
But the most startling results of the scientists investigations are yet to come. Men over the age of 65 are predicted to see a 117% increase in cancer prevalence.
And people living in countries with low and medium Human Development Index scores will see an increase equal to, or greater than, 160%, by the year 2050.
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The researchers undertaking the work note that substantial disparities in cancer cases and deaths existed among men in 2022.
They predict that these disparities these differences in the proportion of men of different ages and backgrounds who will or wont get cancer will widen by 2050.
As it stands, members of Generation X and the Millennial generation are less likely to get cancer than those of the Baby Boomer generation. By 2050, these two more at-risk generations will also be the oldest alive. This will put them at even greater risk, since biological age is a risk factor.
To prevent this widening cancer inequality, they recommend:
- Strengthening health infrastructure
- Enhancing workforce quality and access
- Fostering national and international collaborations (on things like cancer screening and treatment)
- Promoting universal health coverage
These are crucial to reducing cancer disparities, they write, and ensuring cancer equity among men globally.
Why men get cancer more than women
There are several reasons men face higher rates of cancer-related deaths than women.
For example, well-adapted, male-specific cancer screening programs are unavailable, the researchers write. Meanwhile, female-specific cancer screening (e.g., breast and cervical screening) and prevention programs result in lower cancer mortality.
Education about what screening is available may also be lacking, and mutual encouragement to attend screenings among male populations may be less enthusiastic compared with that among female populations.
Second, men smoke a lot more than women. In 2020, according to the report, almost a third of men globally smoked. By contrast, just 6.5% of women smoked. Those figures may have changed since then, but the difference is too big to ignore when considering the two populations’ relative cancer risks.
Third, men are exposed to more carcinogens while at work than women. In terms of the global workforce, men are more likely to work in jobs that expose them to harmful chemicals that can cause cancer after prolonged exposure. This may change over the next three decades, but it may not.
