Researchers at
the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University in China have
uncovered a sharply rising burden of skin cancer in older adults driven largely
by population growth and affecting men twice as often.
Skin cancer already ranks among the costliest
malignancies to treat, and an aging world means more time for ultraviolet
damage to accumulate. Previous research shows older patients now make up nearly
three-quarters of new cases, yet global data capturing the full scope and trend
in those over 65 remains scarce.
In the study, "Burden of Skin Cancer in Older
Adults From 1990 to 2021 and Modelled Projection to 2050," published in JAMA Dermatology,
researchers mined the Global Burden of Diseases 2021 registry to quantify how
melanoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and basal cell carcinoma affect adults aged 65 and older worldwide.
Covering 204 countries and territories, the analysis
encompassed about 4.4 million new skin-cancer cases recorded in 2021 among older adults and projected trends to 2050. Investigators calculated
age-standardized incidence, prevalence, death, and disability-adjusted
life-year (DALY) rates per 100,000 population.
Modest annual increases have compounded into a
dramatic overall rise. Squamous cell carcinoma incidence climbed by roughly 2%
per year from 1990 to 2021, enough to double the rate in about 35 years. Basal
cell carcinoma and melanoma showed similarly steady gains.
Combined with a rapidly expanding older population,
those incremental upticks translated into millions more new diagnoses and
thousands more lost healthy years (DALYs) by 2021 compared with three decades
earlier.
Squamous cell carcinoma produced the steepest toll,
with an age-standardized prevalence of 236.91 per 100,000, 6.16 deaths per
100,000, and 95.50 DALYs per 100,000 in 2021, while basal cell carcinoma showed
the highest incidence at 371.97 per 100,000.
Men carried roughly double the burden of women, and
high sociodemographic index nations recorded the heaviest caseloads. Population
growth, not aging alone, explained most of the 30-year rise, and projections
suggest only keratinocyte cancers will keep climbing by 2050, with melanoma
burden leveling or falling.
New Zealand and Australia recorded the highest 65 and
older melanoma rates in 2021. incidence of 158 cases per 100,000 population, a
prevalence of 1,165 per 100,000, a mortality rate of 27.8 per 100,000, and
502.2 DALYs per 100,000. High-income North America alongside Western, Central,
and Eastern Europe trailed closely behind.
East Asia experienced the most rapid rise in basal
cell carcinoma burden from 1990 to 2021, with average annual percentage
increases exceeding 6% for incidence, prevalence, and DALYs.
Skin cancer poses an escalating public health
challenge for older adults worldwide, particularly for men. Much of this burden
is preventable or treatable if caught early.
By spotlighting where and among whom the disease is rising fastest, the authors provide an opportunity for policymakers, clinicians, and individuals to take decisive action, safeguarding the health and economic well-being of an aging global population.
Source: Skin cancer is a growing threat to older adult men as global population ages
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