Wenyi Zhang
Research expert covering Greater China
Cancer in China - statistics & facts
Cancer is becoming an increasingly substantial challenge to the health of the Chinese people. As a chronic disease, it was the leading cause of death among the country's urban residents and the third leading cause of death in rural China, after heart and cerebrovascular diseases.
The distribution of cancer incidences in China has a distinctive nature from most other countries. Lung cancer is by far the most common type of cancer in the country, causing suffering to more than 800,000 new patients in 2020. The high incidence rate is largely a result of the popularity of smoking, as China has one of the highest per capita cigarette consumption figures globally, with an average adult consuming almost 2,000 cigarettes in 2019. At the same time, four of the six most common cancers in China in 2020 were those of the digestive tract. More than 300,000 new esophageal cancer incidences were confirmed in the country in 2020, accounting for over half of the global case number. Breast and prostate cancers, although common in many developed countries, are relatively less prevalent in China.
The distribution of cancer incidences in China has a distinctive nature from most other countries. Lung cancer is by far the most common type of cancer in the country, causing suffering to more than 800,000 new patients in 2020. The high incidence rate is largely a result of the popularity of smoking, as China has one of the highest per capita cigarette consumption figures globally, with an average adult consuming almost 2,000 cigarettes in 2019. At the same time, four of the six most common cancers in China in 2020 were those of the digestive tract. More than 300,000 new esophageal cancer incidences were confirmed in the country in 2020, accounting for over half of the global case number. Breast and prostate cancers, although common in many developed countries, are relatively less prevalent in China.
