Updated Epidemiology of Gastrointestinal Cancers in East Asia

Overview

Journal Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol

Specialty Gastroenterology

Date 2023 Jan 11

PMID 36631716

Authors

Junjie Huang

Don Eliseo Lucero-Prisno 3rd

Lin Zhang

Wanghong Xu

Sunny H Wong

Siew C Ng

Martin C S Wong

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Globally, gastrointestinal cancers represent more than one-fourth of all cancer incidence and one-third of cancer-related mortality. Although there has been much progress in screening colorectal cancer, the prognosis of other gastrointestinal cancers tends to be poor. The highest burden of gastrointestinal cancers, including stomach, liver, oesophageal and gallbladder cancers, was observed in regions in East Asia. The increasing burden of gastrointestinal cancers in East Asian regions is related to population growth, ageing and the westernization of lifestyle habits in this region. Furthermore, the rising incidence of young-onset colorectal cancer is an emerging trend in East Asia. This Review provides a comprehensive and updated summary of the epidemiology of gastrointestinal cancers in East Asia, with emphasis on comparing their epidemiology in East Asia with that in Western regions, and highlights the major risk factors and implications for prevention. Overall, to optimally reduce the disease burden incurred by gastrointestinal cancers in East Asian regions, a concerted effort will be needed to modify unhealthy lifestyles, promote vaccination against the hepatitis virus, control Helicobacter pylori, liver fluke and hepatitis virus infections, increase the uptake rate of colorectal cancer screening, enhance detection of early cancers and their precursors, and improve cancer survivorship through an organized rehabilitation programme.

Citing Articles

Southeast Asia burden and trend of Gastrointestinal tract cancers from 1990 to 2021 and its prediction to 2050: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021.

Wang D, Tan M, Nov P Int J Colorectal Dis. 2025; 40(1):60.

PMID: 40056174 PMC: 11890395. DOI: 10.1007/s00384-025-04849-2.

Preclinical application of a CD155 targeting chimeric antigen receptor T cell therapy for digestive system cancers.

Zhang K, Mi Y, Zhang B, Xue X, Ding Y, Ma J Oncogene. 2025; .

PMID: 40025231 DOI: 10.1038/s41388-025-03322-2.

Epidemiology and socioeconomic correlates of gastric cancer in Asia: results from the GLOBOCAN 2020 data and projections from 2020 to 2040.

Mousavi S, Ilaghi M, Elahi Vahed I, Nejadghaderi S Sci Rep. 2025; 15(1):6529.

PMID: 39988724 PMC: 11847935. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-90064-6.

Construction of hot tumor classification models in gastrointestinal cancers.

Huang C, Liu G, Yeh Y, Chung S, Chang Y, Chiang N J Transl Med. 2025; 23(1):218.

PMID: 39984938 PMC: 11846462. DOI: 10.1186/s12967-025-06230-x.

Association of systemic inflammatory response index with all-cause and malignant neoplasm mortality in patients with gastrointestinal disease.

Wang P, Zhu H, Jiang S, Liu X, Gao B, Bai W Transl Cancer Res. 2025; 14(1):272-285.

PMID: 39974397 PMC: 11833371. DOI: 10.21037/tcr-24-1491.

References

Arnold M, Abnet C, Neale R, Vignat J, Giovannucci E, McGlynn K . Global Burden of 5 Major Types of Gastrointestinal Cancer. Gastroenterology. 2020; 159(1):335-349.e15. PMC: 8630546. DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2020.02.068. View

Allemani C, Matsuda T, Di Carlo V, Harewood R, Matz M, Niksic M . Global surveillance of trends in cancer survival 2000-14 (CONCORD-3): analysis of individual records for 37 513 025 patients diagnosed with one of 18 cancers from 322 population-based registries in 71 countries. Lancet. 2018; 391(10125):1023-1075. PMC: 5879496. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(17)33326-3. View

Arnold M, Rutherford M, Bardot A, Ferlay J, Andersson T, Myklebust T . Progress in cancer survival, mortality, and incidence in seven high-income countries 1995-2014 (ICBP SURVMARK-2): a population-based study. Lancet Oncol. 2019; 20(11):1493-1505. PMC: 6838671. DOI: 10.1016/S1470-2045(19)30456-5. View

Huang J, Lok V, Ngai C, Zhang L, Yuan J, Lao X . Worldwide Burden of, Risk Factors for, and Trends in Pancreatic Cancer. Gastroenterology. 2020; 160(3):744-754. DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2020.10.007. View

Huang J, Patel H, Boakye D, Chandrasekar V, Koulaouzidis A, Lucero-Prisno Iii D . Worldwide distribution, associated factors, and trends of gallbladder cancer: A global country-level analysis. Cancer Lett. 2021; 521:238-251. DOI: 10.1016/j.canlet.2021.09.004. View

Pourhoseingholi M, Vahedi M, Baghestani A . Burden of gastrointestinal cancer in Asia; an overview. Gastroenterol Hepatol Bed Bench. 2015; 8(1):19-27. PMC: 4285928. View

Ezzati M, Riboli E . Behavioral and dietary risk factors for noncommunicable diseases. N Engl J Med. 2013; 369(10):954-64. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMra1203528. View

Akimoto N, Ugai T, Zhong R, Hamada T, Fujiyoshi K, Giannakis M . Rising incidence of early-onset colorectal cancer - a call to action. Nat Rev Clin Oncol. 2020; 18(4):230-243. PMC: 7994182. DOI: 10.1038/s41571-020-00445-1. View

Wong M, Huang J, Lok V, Wang J, Fung F, Ding H . Differences in Incidence and Mortality Trends of Colorectal Cancer Worldwide Based on Sex, Age, and Anatomic Location. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2020; 19(5):955-966.e61. DOI: 10.1016/j.cgh.2020.02.026. View

10.

Wolf A, Fontham E, Church T, Flowers C, Guerra C, LaMonte S . Colorectal cancer screening for average-risk adults: 2018 guideline update from the American Cancer Society. CA Cancer J Clin. 2018; 68(4):250-281. DOI: 10.3322/caac.21457. View

11.

Sung J, Chiu H, Jung K, Jun J, Sekiguchi M, Matsuda T . Increasing Trend in Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer in Asia: More Cancers in Men and More Rectal Cancers. Am J Gastroenterol. 2019; 114(2):322-329. DOI: 10.14309/ajg.0000000000000133. View

12.

Patel S, Karlitz J, Yen T, Lieu C, Boland C . The rising tide of early-onset colorectal cancer: a comprehensive review of epidemiology, clinical features, biology, risk factors, prevention, and early detection. Lancet Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2022; 7(3):262-274. DOI: 10.1016/S2468-1253(21)00426-X. View

13.

Sung H, Ferlay J, Siegel R, Laversanne M, Soerjomataram I, Jemal A . Global Cancer Statistics 2020: GLOBOCAN Estimates of Incidence and Mortality Worldwide for 36 Cancers in 185 Countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2021; 71(3):209-249. DOI: 10.3322/caac.21660. View

14.

Sunkara V, Hebert J . The colorectal cancer mortality-to-incidence ratio as an indicator of global cancer screening and care. Cancer. 2015; 121(10):1563-9. PMC: 4424055. DOI: 10.1002/cncr.29228. View

15.

Adams S, Choi S, Khang L, Campbell D, Friedman D, Eberth J . Decreased Cancer Mortality-to-Incidence Ratios with Increased Accessibility of Federally Qualified Health Centers. J Community Health. 2015; 40(4):633-41. PMC: 4490935. DOI: 10.1007/s10900-014-9978-8. View

16.

Choi E, Lee S, Nhung B, Suh M, Park B, Jun J . Cancer mortality-to-incidence ratio as an indicator of cancer management outcomes in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries. Epidemiol Health. 2017; 39:e2017006. PMC: 5434228. DOI: 10.4178/epih.e2017006. View

17.

Popkin B, Adair L, Ng S . Global nutrition transition and the pandemic of obesity in developing countries. Nutr Rev. 2012; 70(1):3-21. PMC: 3257829. DOI: 10.1111/j.1753-4887.2011.00456.x. View

18.

Faruque S, Tong J, Lacmanovic V, Agbonghae C, Minaya D, Czaja K . The Dose Makes the Poison: Sugar and Obesity in the United States - a Review. Pol J Food Nutr Sci. 2020; 69(3):219-233. PMC: 6959843. DOI: 10.31883/pjfns/110735. View

19.

Mills K, Bundy J, Kelly T, Reed J, Kearney P, Reynolds K . Global Disparities of Hypertension Prevalence and Control: A Systematic Analysis of Population-Based Studies From 90 Countries. Circulation. 2016; 134(6):441-50. PMC: 4979614. DOI: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.115.018912. View

20.

Navarro M, Nicolas A, Ferrandez A, Lanas A . Colorectal cancer population screening programs worldwide in 2016: An update. World J Gastroenterol. 2017; 23(20):3632-3642. PMC: 5449420. DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v23.i20.3632. View