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Cancer Death Percentage In India: Cases of cancer in children are rapidly increasing worldwide, with 94% of deaths occurring in low and middle-income countries. In 2023, 17,000 children died in India. Experts have demanded that childhood cancer be prioritised in the National Cancer Control Programme.
Cancer Death Rate In India: Cancer is becoming a serious and growing concern among children worldwide, but the most worrying aspect is that approximately 94 per cent of these deaths are recorded in low and middle-income countries. This means the disease is proving most fatal for children in regions with fewer resources. In India, around 17,000 children died due to cancer in 2023, making it the tenth leading cause of death among children. Despite this, childhood cancer has not yet been prioritised in India's National Cancer Control Programme, according to Dr. Swarup Mitra, a cancer expert at Cancer Care Hospital, Darbhanga. It is therefore essential that childhood cancer be immediately included in national cancer control plans.
The Global Burden of Disease 2023 study, published in The Lancet, has revealed several shocking statistics regarding this disparity. According to the report, approximately 3.77 lakh new cases of childhood cancer were reported globally in 2023, while around 1.44 lakh children died. Consequently, this disease has become a major cause of death among children, claiming more lives than diseases like measles, TB, and HIV.
South Asia has emerged as a major hub of this crisis, accounting for approximately 20.5 per cent of the world's total childhood cancer deaths. Furthermore, a significant increase of about 16.9 per cent in these deaths was observed between 1990 and 2023. However, a positive aspect is that global deaths have decreased, but the benefit has not been felt equally across all countries. Improved treatment in high-income countries leads to a higher survival rate for children, whereas the lack of timely diagnosis and treatment in poorer countries poses a major obstacle.
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