Cancer on the Rise

By NICHOLAS BAKALAR
The New York Times
Published: Dec 23, 2008

There will be about 20 million new cases of cancer a year by 2030, up from 12 million a year today, according to a report published this month by the World Health Organization. Worldwide, the most common cancers are lung, breast and colorectal, but the incidence of these and other cancers, and the number of deaths they cause, vary greatly by region. More than half of cancer cases and 60 percent of the deaths occur in poor countries. “China and India are going to dominate with 25 percent of the world’s population,” said Dr. Peter Boyle, a co-editor of the report and the director of the International Agency for Research on Cancer. “What happens there is going to drive the numbers.” NICHOLAS BAKALAR

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