‘UK is on brink of disaster’ as cancer deaths set to soar – urgent action is needed now, warns charity
PROGRESS on reducing cancer deaths has stalled as cases in Britain are set to rise to more than 600,000 per year by 2050.
Cancer Research UK said improvements to survival now “pale in comparison” to the breakthroughs of the 1980s, 90s and 00s.
Breast Cancer Now said Britain is “on the brink of disaster” because breast screening uptake is falling and wait times are long.
A report by the World Health Organization warned UK cancer cases will rise by more than a third and deaths by 50 per cent by the middle of the century.
The WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer warned of a “rapidly growing global cancer burden”.
UK cancer cases to rise by a third
It estimated cancer cases in the UK will rise from 450,000 in 2022 to 625,000 in 2050 and deaths will increase from 182,000 to 279,000.
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Dr Panagiota Mitrou, from the World Cancer Research Fund, said: “We know around 40 per cent of cancers cases could be prevented - now is the time to turn the tide.”
She said we need bigger efforts to tackle risk factors like smoking, drinking and obesity.
Brits are less likely to die from a tumour than at any time in history but the pace of progress on treatment is five times lower than in the 90s.
Cancer Research found the proportion of patients who survived 10 years or more shot up from 32.5 to 41.2 per cent between 1991 and 2001.
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Between 2011 and 2018 it rose only from 47.9 to 49.8 per cent.
The 2.7 per cent per year improvement in the 90s tumbled to just 0.6 per cent per year in the 2010s.
It is deeply concerning that cancer survival improvements are slowing while the number of cases increases
Baroness Delyth Morgan
CRUK chief Michelle Mitchell said: “Cancer survival in the UK is at the highest it’s ever been, which shows we’re making progress.
“But it’s worrying that the rate of improvement has slowed in recent years, and patients today face anxious and historically long waits for tests and treatments.
“Almost one in two people across the UK will get cancer in their lifetime and the number of new cases each year is growing.
“Beating cancer requires real political leadership and must be a priority.”
Baroness Delyth Morgan, chief executive at Breast Cancer Now, said: “It’s deeply concerning that cancer survival improvements are slowing while the number of people being diagnosed increases.
“Breast cancer care in the UK is on the brink of disaster.
“We’re seeing breast screening uptake in England tragically falling short of targets and long waiting times preventing women from starting potentially life-saving treatment on time.”
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The IARC paper predicted cancer cases worldwide will surge by 77 per cent by the middle of this century.
Richer countries like the UK will see the most people diagnosed, it said, but survival will be worse in poor nations.
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