Rural-Urban Disparity in Premature Cancer Mortality in Young People Aged 15-44 Years in China, 2004-2021.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to examine and compare premature cancer mortality in young people aged 15-44 years old between rural and urban areas to inform early-onset cancer prevention.

METHODS

The data were obtained from the China Death Surveillance Datasets from 2004 to 2021. The study sample consisted of cancer deaths of young people aged 15-44 years old. Age-standardized mortality rates (ASMRs) were calculated, and joinpoint regressions were used to examine trends in ASMRs.

RESULTS

There were overall decreasing trends in ASMRs for all cancers in both rural and urban young people in China from 2004 to 2021. However, the decrease was relatively slower in rural areas, where ASMRs for pancreatic and ovarian cancers showed increasing trends. The five leading types of cancer deaths consistently remained liver, lung, leukemia, stomach, and other cancers in both rural and urban areas after 2013.

CONCLUSION

Our findings indicate that there were rural-urban disparities in cancer mortality in young people, which showed a different pattern compared to other age groups. More efforts are needed to develop effective early-onset cancer prevention strategies, with particular emphasis on liver cancer and rural areas.