Disparities in the global burden of tracheal, bronchus, and lung cancer from 1990 to 2019

Tracheal, bronchus, and lung (TBL) cancer imposes a high disease burden globally, and its pattern varies greatly across regions and countries. This study aimed to explore the global burden and temporal trends of TBL cancer from 1990 to 2019.

Data on incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) metrics (number, crude rate, and age-standardized rates), and the attributable risk fraction of DALY of TBL cancer from 1990 to 2019 in 21 Global Burden of Disease (GBD) regions, four World Bank income regions, 204 countries and territories, and the globe were obtained from the up-to-date GBD 2019 study. We applied estimated annual percentage changes (EAPCs) to the age-standardized incidence rate (ASIR), age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR), and age-standardized DALY rate (ASDR) to quantify the temporal trends of the TBL cancer burden from 1990-2019. Associations of EAPC of age-standardized rates with universal health coverage (UHC) index at the national level were evaluated with Pearson correlation analysis.

Globally, approximately 2,260,000 new TBL cancer cases, 2,042,600 deaths, and 45,858,000 DALYs were reported in 2019. Combination of all modifiable risk factors, behavioral, environmental, and metabolic risk factors accounted for 79.1%, 66.4%, 33.3%, and 7.9% of global lung cancer DALYs, respectively. The overall ASIR (EAPC: -0.1 [95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.2, -0.1]), ASMR (EAPC: -0.3 [95% CI: -0.4, -0.3]), and ASDR (EAPC: -0.7 [95% CI: -0.7, -0.6]) decreased from 1990 to 2019. The highest mortality rate of TBL cancer occurred in the >85-year-old age group for both sexes among high-income countries (HICs) and upper-middle-income countries (UMCs), and in males aged 80-84 years and females aged >85 years in lower middle-income countries (LMCs). HICs experienced the largest declines in ASIR (-12.6%), ASMR (-20.3%), and ASDR (-27.8%) of TBL cancer between 1990 and 2019, while UMCs had the highest increases in ASIR (16.7%) and ASMR (8.0%) over the period. Eleven (52.4%), 14 (66.7%), and 15 (71.4%) regions of the 21 GBD regions experienced descending trends in ASIR, ASMR, and ASDR of TBL cancer between 1990 and 2019, respectively, with the greatest mean decrease per year (EAPC: -1.7 [95% CI: -2.0, -1.5] for ASIR, -1.9 [95% CI: -2.2, -1.7] for ASMR, and -2.2 [95% CI: -2.5, -2.0] for ASDR) being observed in eastern Europe. The ASIR, ASMR, and ASDR of TBL cancer were deemed to be in decreasing trends in 85, 91, and 104 countries and territories, with the largest decrease in Bahrain (EAPC: -3.0 [95% CI: -3.3, -2.7] for ASIR, -3.0 [95% CI: -3.3, -2.6] for ASMR, and -3.4 [95% CI: -3.8, -3.1] for ASDR). ASIR (r=0.524), ASMR (r=0.411), and ASDR (r=0.353) of TBL cancer were positively associated with UHC index at the national level in 2019.

The TBL cancer burden shows a downward trend at the global level but varies greatly across regions and countries. A decreasing trend in the TBL cancer burden was observed in the most of the 21 GBD regions and 204 countries from 1990 to 2019. UMCs had the highest burden of TBL cancer and showed the largest increases in ASIR and ASMR.