Global Study Connects One in Eight Cancer Cases to Infections

A comprehensive study by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), part of the WHO, published in The Lancet Oncology, estimates that infections caused approximately 2.3 million new cancer cases worldwide in 2024. This accounts for about 12% of all new diagnoses. The research identified more infectious agents and cancer types linked to carcinogenic infections, emphasizing the critical role of infection control in reducing the global cancer burden, especially in low- and middle-income countries.