Imagine a world where we have all the tools to prevent cancer. Maybe we’ve identified and mitigated all environmental exposures that can cause oncogenic mutations, or perhaps we’ve developed vaccines to prevent cancer through routine primary care. For the rare instance when cancer cells may still emerge, imagine we’ve also developed robust early detection methods and treatments that reliably lead to a cure.
But these answers are not the full solution; Current disparities in cancer prevention demonstrate why scientific advances alone won’t be enough. We’ve learned that obesity increases cancer risk, but access to healthy foods remains a privilege (1). We’ve established routine cancer screenings, such as Pap smears, mammograms, and colonoscopies, as cornerstones of primary care, but billions of people across the globe lack access to essential health services (2). We now have a vaccine to prevent HPV-related cancers, but vaccination also requires healthcare access. These disparities cost lives, as evidenced by the alarming statistic that over 90% of deaths from cervical cancer occur in low- and middle-income countries (3). Unequal access to healthcare is also driving cancer disparities within high-resource regions. In the United States, for example, people with Medicaid or no health insurance are over 50% more likely to be diagnosed with late-stage cancer compared to those with private health insurance (4). Some deaths from cancer are already preventable—an unacceptable manifestation of inequality that we can’t allow to persist.
As we continue developing the technologies we need to prevent cancer, we must also deepen our commitment to ensuring equal access to cancer prevention and screening tools. This will require increased funding for public health initiatives such as those already led by the WHO and other organizations, as well as sustained partnerships between global and local initiatives (5, 6). It will also require universal commitment to upholding healthcare as a human right.
Now imagine a world where we’ve not only developed robust cancer prevention and early detection methods, but we’ve also ensured that every individual has access to healthcare. Only then will we be free from cancer.
References:
(1) “Obesity and Cancer.” U.S. National Cancer Institute. https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/obesity/obesity-fact-sheet
(2) “Tracking Universal Health Coverage: 2023 Global monitoring report.” World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240080379
(3) “Cervical Cancer.” World Health Organization.” https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/cervical-cancer
(4) Zhao J, Han X, Nogueira L, Fedewa SA, Jemal A, Halpern MT, Yabroff KR. Health insurance status and cancer stage at diagnosis and survival in the United States. CA Cancer J Clin. 2022 Nov;72(6):542-560. doi: 10.3322/caac.21732. Epub 2022 Jul 13. PMID: 35829644.
(5) “Cervical Cancer Elimination Initiative.” World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/initiatives/cervical-cancer-elimination-initiative
(6) “The Global Breast Cancer Initiative.” World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/initiatives/global-breast-cancer-initiative/breast-cancer-inequities
Image note: The header image accompanying this article was generated by the FEBS Communications team using artificial intelligence for illustrative purposes only. It does not depict real experimental data, clinical material or microscopy, and should not be interpreted as a scientific image.