Using data to improve care: childhood cancer in China

The last decades have seen substantial improvements in childhood cancer treatment, with cure rates of more than 80%. 1 Gatta G Botta L Rossi S et al. Childhood cancer survival in Europe 1999–2007: results of EUROCARE-5-a population-based study. Lancet Oncol. 2014; 15: 35-47 Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (610) Google Scholar Although these statistics represent hope for families, they are only relevant to those treated in high-income countries. Cure rates are far lower in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), where more than 80% of children with cancer reside. 2 Atun R Bhakta N Denburg A et al. Sustainable care for children with cancer: a Lancet Oncology Commission. Lancet Oncol. 2020; 21: e185-e224 Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (92) Google Scholar This survival gap is one of the starkest inequalities in global child health. In this context, Xin Ni and colleagues 3 Ni X Li Z Li X et al. Socioeconomic inequalities in cancer incidence and access to health services among children and adolescents in China: a cross-sectional study. Lancet. 2022; : 1020-1032 Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (1) Google Scholar established childhood cancer incidence rates across China by leveraging new health services databases that approach population-level coverage, including national hospital-based childhood cancer registries coordinated by the National Center for Pediatric Cancer Surveillance. These authors also examined regional variation in both the human and physical infrastructure necessary for optimal childhood cancer diagnosis and treatment, obtaining data on the availability of key resources from a national Hospital Quality Monitoring System database. Socioeconomic inequalities in cancer incidence and access to health services among children and adolescents in China: a cross-sectional studyOur study showed that the burden of cancer in children and adolescents in China is much higher than previously nationally reported from 2000 to 2015. The distribution of the accessibility of health services, as a social determinant of health, might have a notable role in the socioeconomic inequalities in cancer incidence among Chinese children and adolescents. With regards to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, policy approaches should prioritise increasing the accessibility of health services for early diagnosis to improve outcomes and subsequently reduce disease burdens, as well as narrowing the socioeconomic inequalities of childhood and adolescent cancer. Full-Text PDF