The report “Lancet Oncology Commission on Cancer Workforce: A Global Crisis” was launched at the 2026 American Society of Clinical Oncology conference.
It was produced by an international team of cancer experts, predicts a 75% increase in cancer incidence by 2050, which means 35 million people per year will be diagnosed with cancer, with an estimated 19 million deaths per year.
Within the report, the experts predict over 70% of those new cancers will occur in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs).
Currently, while one in three cancer cases are undiagnosed worldwide, >60% (two in three) remain undiagnosed in certain parts of Africa. By 2050, the report predicts five-year net cancer survival rates are projected to remain the lowest in Africa (34%) and Asia (39%).
In a sharp contrast to these growing cancer numbers, the report projects a global shortfall of 100 million cancer care workers by 2050. It found the largest gaps will be in nursing and community health workers (~68 million) and cancer diagnostic staff (~16 million), threatening to overwhelm health systems as the global cancer burden continues to rise.
While cancer survival in high-income countries, such as the United States of America and France, is predicted to exceed 60% by 2050 (highlighting the equity divide between high-income countries and LMICs), the report emphasises that the cancer workforce crisis will also affect high-income countries, compromising their ability to improve cancer outcomes.
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The experts urge within the report that investing in the global cancer workforce now could avert 170 million cancer deaths between 2030 and 2050 and deliver $120 trillion in economic benefits – yielding a $4 return for every $1 invested.
The experts have created an urgent call to action via a “7-Point Global Cancer Workforce Plan” which includes using the evolving potential of digital health and AI in cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Speaking from the report launch at the American Society for Clinical Oncology Congress in Chicago, Mark Lawler, Professor of Digital Health, Queen’s University Belfast and Commission Co-Author, said:
“These findings are sobering; the predicted 35 million rise in cancer cases each year globally is in sharp contrast to the projected global shortfall of 100 million cancer care workers by 2050.
Make no mistake; this is a wake-up call, no matter where you are in the world. What we’ve uncovered is shocking – how can we reconcile a 15 million increase in cancer cases diagnosed with a 100 million decrease in cancer staffing?
“Make no mistake; this is a wake-up call, no matter where you are in the world. What we’ve uncovered is shocking – how can we reconcile a 15 million increase in cancer cases diagnosed with a 100 million decrease in cancer staffing? The data unfortunately do not lie. We can’t wait until 2050 to see if our projections are correct – we must act now.”
Commenting on the findings, the Commission’s Co-Lead, Dr Hedvid Hricak, Chair Emeritus from the Department of Radiology at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, said: “Our global initiative brings a clear warning: without urgent action to address critical workforce shortages, we risk a cancer crisis unlike anything we’ve seen before.
“We call for immediate, country-specific strategies, smarter workforce use, task-shifting and AI/digital health adoption, alongside future-ready education and strong, sustainable financing through public–private partnerships.”
Dr Zachary Ward, who led the modelling for the Commission, and is Assistant Professor of Health Decision Science at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said: “In order to better understand how the landscape of cancer burden and workforce personnel will shift over the next 25 years, we developed a simulation model focused on 17 common cancers and 18 specific personnel types across the cancer care continuum.
“We integrated all available data to project outcomes for each country and then undertook policy analyses to identify which personnel shortages will be critical gaps in each setting to provide priority-setting guidance for policy makers.”
Dr Patrick Loehrer, Lancet Commission Co-Lead and Director of Center of Global Oncology at Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center, added: “An important finding of this commission is that “one size does not fit all”. Just as there are variations in the types of cancers that dominate incidence and mortality around the world, personnel deficits also vary by country and region.
“National Cancer Control Plans need to be specific to personnel requirements along the cancer care continuum, and they should address viable means for financial sustainability through national and international partnerships.”
Professor Andrew Scott, Lancet Oncology Commission Co-Author and Head of the Tumour Targeting Laboratory at the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia, said: “Identifying gaps in the workforce for imaging of cancer patients is essential to ensuring correct diagnoses and treatments are available for patients in all countries.
“This requires prioritisation of imaging workforce needs in country healthcare plans, and establishing recruitment and training programs to provide the key staff necessary for performing the essential imaging studies for optimal patient care and clinical outcomes.”
We need to find solutions – rapidly… digital tools can also be part of the solution, freeing-up staff administrative burden and “red tape” to do what they do best – support patients. Professor Andrew Scott, Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute, Melbourne
Professor Lawler added: “We need to find solutions – rapidly. While we must invest in more staffing, our work with the London Care Record, highlighted in this Commission, clearly shows, that as well as saving money, digital tools can also be part of the solution, freeing-up staff administrative burden and “red tape” to do what they do best – support patients.”
Source: Queen’s University Belfast
