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Cancer deaths among men predicted to increase 93% by 2050, study finds
Cancer cases and deaths among men are expected to surge globally by 2050, according to a new study from the American Cancer Society.
In the study, published Monday in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the ACS, researchers projected an 84% increase in cancer cases and a 93% increase in cancer deaths among men worldwide between between 2022 and 2050.
The increases were greater among men 65 and older and in countries and territories with a low or medium human development index. The index measures each country’s development in health, knowledge and standard of living, according to the study.
Using data from the Global Cancer Observatory, the study analyzed more than 30 different types of cancers across 185 countries and territories worldwide to make demographic projections.
This isn’t the first study to paint a less-than-optimistic outlook at the future of cancer case numbers.
Earlier this year, the World Health Organization predicted we will see more than 35 million new cancer cases by 2050, a 77% increase from the estimated 20 million cases in 2022. The survey looked at both men and women in 115 countries.
The organization pointed to several factors behind the predicted global cancer increase, including:
- Population aging and growth
- Changes to people’s exposure to risk factors, with air pollution a key driver of environmental risk factors
- Tobacco and alcohol use
- Obesity
In the latest study, authors also pointed to smoking and alcohol consumption as modifiable risk factors prevalent among men.
Other factors that may make men face higher rates of cancer compared to women include lower participation in cancer prevention activities and underuse of screening and treatment options, the authors added.
Improving access to cancer prevention, screening, diagnosis and treatment options, especially for older men, could help improve cancer outcomes, lead author Habtamu Mellie Bizuayehu said in a news release.
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Southwest Airlines is gearing up for some major changes over the next two years, an overhaul the carrier is betting will win big with passengers.
Along with more red-eye flights and a shift to assigned seating after 50 years of open seating, Southwest is redesigning the interior cabins of its 800 existing aircraft.
“This is a very significant change. It may be one of the most significant changes we’ve ever gone through,” Ryan Green, Southwest’s executive vice president commercial transformation, told CBS News’ Kris Van Cleave, who recently got a sneak peek at the future cabins.
Southwest passengers will notice the difference, said Van Cleave of the redesign. Changes include new seat trays and device trays for all passengers throughout the cabin, as well as charging ports in all of the seats.
For an additional fee, premium seating with 3-4 inches of additional legroom will also be offered on refurbished planes.
“Customers want premium of all kinds, and if you’re flying longer, that extra legroom is worth a lot,” Southwest CEO Bob Jordan told CBS News.
Southwest says it will begin booking flights with assigned seats in the second half of 2025 for travel in the first half of 2026. That’s also when the airline expects the newly designed cabins to be available, pending approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.
Jordan and other Southwest executives outlined the airline’s remodeling plans this week at an investor meeting in Dallas. The changes come as the company, long known for its loyal customers, looks to meet passengers’ evolving needs and boost its bottom line.
Said Jordan, “Consumer preferences have changed and, the way we fly has changed.”
contributed to this report.
