WHO’s Global Breast Cancer Initiative eyes 2.5 million lives saved by 2040 as India’s survival rate lags

The World Health Organization has published its first country-wise breast cancer survival estimates, covering all 194 member states, to give countries a baseline for measuring progress under the WHO Global Breast Cancer Initiative. The initiative aims to reduce premature breast cancer mortality by 2.5% every year and save 2.5 million lives by 2040.

The estimates, published in Nature Medicine, put India’s five-year breast cancer survival rate for women diagnosed during 2017-2021 at 65.7%, compared with a global median of 77.8%. Survival reaches 87.3% in high-income countries, 88.5% in the WHO region of the Americas and 84% in the European region.

The WHO report found wide disparities in survival across income groups: median five-year survival was 87.3% in high-income countries, compared with 78.7% in upper-middle-income countries, 60.1% in lower-middle-income countries and just 41.9% in low-income countries.

Breast cancer is now the most common cancer among women in 158 countries and caused an estimated 6.9 lakh deaths globally in 2024, with nearly 70% of those deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. The WHO said survival depends largely on early diagnosis and timely access to surgery, radiotherapy and cancer medicines, with stage at diagnosis remaining one of the strongest predictors of outcomes.

In India, the breast cancer survival rate has steadily improved over the years, though only about two of three women diagnosed with the disease survive for at least five years. A 2024 National Cancer Registry Programme study had already shown survival rising from 31-54% among women diagnosed in the 1990s to 66.4% for those diagnosed during 2012-2015.

The WHO estimates were derived using survival data from cancer registries in 67 countries, with statistical modelling used for countries lacking complete registry data, incorporating factors such as stage at diagnosis, access to cancer medicines, radiotherapy and mammography capacity, and overall adult mortality.