IARC 60th Anniversary - 19-21 May 2026
Session : 21/05/26 - Posters
International Variation in the Deprivation and Age Disparities of Cancer Survival 2017-2021: an ICBP Population-Based Study
WATERHOUSE F. 1, FINK H. 1, BARDOT A. 1, MORGAN E. 1, RUTHERFORD M. 2, BUTLER J. 3, EVANS S. 4, LAMBERT P. 5,6, MOLLER B. 5, MYKLEBUST T. 5, BRAY F. 1, SOERJOMATARAM I. 1
1 Cancer Surveillance Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France; 2 Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom; 3 Department of Gynaecological Oncology, The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom; 4 Victorian Cancer Registry, Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne, Australia; 5 Cancer Registry of Norway, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway; 6 Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
International Variation in the Deprivation and Age Disparities of Cancer Survival 2017-2021: an International Cancer Benchmarking Partnership (ICBP) Population-Based Study
Background
Deprivation and age-related disparities in cancer survival persist across high-income countries, even among those with universal access to healthcare. Whilst the existence of these gaps is well-documented and understanding of the underlying causes has progressed significantly, improvements have yet to materialise. International benchmarking offers an opportunity to determine the extent to which these inequalities are systemic versus modifiable by health policy.
Objectives
To quantify and compare deprivation and age-related disparities in net survival internationally across nine cancer sites and three jurisdictions: England (UK), Ireland, and Victoria (Australia).
Methods
As part of the International Cancer Benchmarking Partnership (ICBP), we analysed data from partner registries in England, Ireland, and Victoria (Australia). Deprivation was determined using area-based measures, derived from the specific deprivation index of each jurisdiction. We calculated 3- and 5-year age-standardized net survival for patients diagnosed between 2017 and 2021 across nine cancer sites. Net-survival estimates were stratified by area-based deprivation quintile and age (55–64 vs. 75–84 years) to characterise survival gradients. The burden of inequality was further quantified by estimating the number of avoidable deaths associated with the elimination of both the deprivation and age gradients.
Results
Preliminary results confirm consistent deprivation and age gradients across all cancer sites and jurisdictions, though magnitudes varied substantially. The widest deprivation gaps were observed for colon, rectum, lung, and oesophageal cancers, reaching a maximum difference of 19.9% (most vs. least deprived) for oesophageal cancer in Victoria. Similarly, age-related penalties were most severe in rectal and ovarian cancers, with the largest absolute difference of 29.5% observed for ovarian cancer in Ireland (55–64 vs. 75–84 years). Ireland exhibited the smallest deprivation gap for six of the nine sites. Notably, the gap for breast cancer was just 3.8% in Ireland, compared to 9.9% in England and 10.3% in Victoria. Conversely, no distinct jurisdictional pattern emerged regarding the magnitude of the age gap.
Conclusions
While survival penalties associated with deprivation and age are universal, the observed variation in their magnitude suggests they are amenable to intervention. The findings indicate that specific jurisdictions have been more successful in mitigating these penalties. Future efforts must therefore focus on translating the strategies of more equitable jurisdictions to underperforming ones to minimise deprivation and age-related avoidable deaths, thus reaffirming the importance of international benchmarking efforts.