Cancer cases and deaths are expected to increase in 2024, according to a recent study from the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
The study said in 2024 there will be an estimated 247,100 new cancer diagnoses and 88,100 cancer deaths, which is up from 239,100 cases and 86,700 deaths in 2023. Lung cancer is expected to be the most common cause with 20,700 deaths, compared to colorectal cancer (9,400 deaths), pancreatic cancer (6,100), breast cancer (5,500), and prostate cancer (5,000).
It is also expected that the age-standardized mortality rate will be 37 percent higher among males compared to females.
Cancer continues to be the leading cause of death in Canada, with the Centre for Population Health Data at Statistics Canada estimating in 2023 that around 25 percent of all deaths in Canada in 2022 came from the disease.
The study said while the number of cancer cases in 2024 will likely rise compared with previous years, overall cancer incidence and mortality continue to decline in Canada. The study attributed the declines to efforts across the country’s “cancer control spectrum,” as well as improvements in prevention, screening, and treatment.
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According to the study, there have also been noticeable improvements in lung and colorectal cancer incidence and mortality, thanks in part to reduced rates of tobacco smoking. However, reductions in lung cancer incidence have not been as pronounced among women.
Rise in Cancer a ‘Daunting Prospect’
In an editorial released the same day as the study, Dr. Keerat Grewal wrote that Canada’s expected rise in cancer incidence and mortality is a “daunting prospect” given that many people with symptoms of the disease already face “circuitous and frustrating paths to obtain a diagnosis and start treatment.”
“Receiving a diagnosis of cancer in an emergency department is becoming routine in Canada, which highlights the failure of health care systems to support adequate primary care–initiated pathways for diagnosis of suspected cancer,” Dr. Grewal said.
Dr. Grewal said many emergency physicians feel that a growing number of cancer patients in Ontario are receiving their diagnosis as part of an emergent presentation requiring urgent hospital admission. She wrote that this became more common during the pandemic recovery period, and typically impacts Canadians who are older, do not have access to primary care, or come from minority backgrounds.
“Although access to testing may be expedited, an emergency department is an unfortunate place to be told ‘you may have cancer,’” Dr. Grewal wrote.
