By Daniel Oduvwu

Cancer cases around the world have increased by 33 percent between 2005 and 2015, mostly due to population aging and growth, claims a new American research.

According to a new report from the Global Burden of Disease Cancer Collaboration published online by JAMA Oncology, there were an estimated 17.5 million cancer cases around the globe and 8.7 million deaths, in 2015.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide and estimates of its burden around the globe are vital for cancer control planning.

The report by Christina Fitzmaurice, MD, MPH, of the University of Washington, Seattle and co-authors estimated cancer deaths using vital registration system data, cancer registry incidence data and verbal autopsy data.

Among the report’s key findings were that globally, the odds of developing cancer during a lifetime were one in three for men and one in four for women.

The study suggested that prostate cancer was the most common cancer globally in men (1.6 million cases).