Cancer Mortality — China, 2018

IntroductionCancer is an important public health concern with heavy disease burden in China. In 2017, cancer is the leading cause of death, with around 2.60 million deaths, which accounts for 26.07% of all deaths. This study aims to present cancer mortality in China in 2018 to provide evidence for cancer control and prevention. MethodsMortality data from China Cause of Death Reporting System (CDRS) and population data from National Bureau of Statistics are used for cancer mortality estimation. A descriptive analysis was conducted to demonstrate the results. ResultsA total of 2,557,297 cancer deaths were estimated in China in 2018 with a mortality rate and age-standardized mortality rate of 183.89 and 145.60 per 100,000, respectively. Lung, liver, and stomach cancer were the three leading causes of cancer death and accounted for around 56.75% of all cancer deaths. The age-standardized mortality rate was higher in men (194.37 per 100,000) than in women (99.47 per 100,000), in urban areas (148.25 per 100,000) than in rural areas (144.62 per 100,000), and in eastern regions (150.57 per 100,000) than in central (142.09 per 100,000)/western regions (141.54 per 100,000). The age-specific mortality rate remains low for the population younger than 44 years old and reaches its peak after 80 years old. Leukemia is the leading cause of cancer death among those aged 0–14 years in both sexes, while breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in women aged 15–44 years. Conclusions and Implications for Public Health PracticeThe cancer mortality patterns show substantial disparities among sexes, age groups, areas, and regions. Healthy lifestyle promotion, active vaccination uptake, and environmental governance are essential to eliminate cancer-related risk factors in the overall population. Tailored strategies for the early screening and diagnosis, therapeutic management, and palliative care should be a top priority for enforcement among target populations and regions.