World Cancer Day 2026, observed on February 4, serves as a powerful reminder of one of the biggest health challenges facing India and the world. Cancer is no longer a disease limited to old age, and doctors across India are raising red flags over its alarming rise among younger adults. OPDs are increasingly seeing patients in their 30s and early 40s with cancers once considered age-related.
Dr Dewesh Kishan, Consultant, Medical Oncology, Yatharth Hospital 110 Unit, says, “In recent years, the most common cancers that people have gone to OPDs for are lung cancer, oral cancer, breast cancer, colorectal cancer, and other solid tumors. There is a clear increase among younger patients, notably those aged 30 to 45. Before, most cases were seen in those over 50, but now about 15 to 18 percent of people with cancer are under 40. More and more women are getting breast cancer in their early 30s. In fact, men are getting oral and colorectal cancers even when they are 35 to 45 years old. This change is worrying and shows how important it is to get screened early.”
Some less spoken elements, outside lifestyle are:
1. A lot of stress and long hours at work
2. Pollution of the environment and bad air quality
3. Hormonal imbalance and delayed pregnancies
4. Family history and genetic risk, which many people still don’t know about; not getting regular health check-ups is also a big problem.
Dr Rajat Bajaj, Director, Medical Oncology, Fortis, Noida, says, “Cancer is now occurring in younger age groups as well. 30% of breast cancer is now found in people under 40 years of age. This is more aggressive and likely worse outcome. Prostate cancer in males is also found in the sixth decade in Indian males, 10 years earlier than their Western counterparts.” Talking about causes, he said, “Genetic causes have always played a role in 10 to 20% cancer cases. Addiction to tobacco, pollution in urban cities, and unawareness about screening are very important contributing causes of rising cancer cases.”
Talking about Cancer myths, he said, Cancer is still considered a communicable disease in society, which is an absolute myth. Some people believe doing a biopsy will lead to the spread of cancer cells in the body, but it’s far from true. Also, sugar and wheat don’t lead to the growth of cancer cells, instead they provide essential nutrition to the patient.
Dr Abhishek Raj, HOD & Senior Consultant, Medical Oncology, Yatharth Hospital, Noida Extension, says, “The incidence of cancer in India has been towards more younger patients getting afflicted with various cancer subtypes for the last 2-3 decades. This situation is even more alarming in the last 10 years, where we have seen a lot of younger cases being diagnosed with cancer. It is partly related to changing lifestyle, like early onset of smoking and alcohol intake among youths, prevalence of obesity and metabolic syndrome, sedentary lifestyle, and pollution.”
Dr Abhishek Raj highlighted a case study. He said, “A lady visited me just 2 months after delivering her baby. She felt a lump in her breast. She discussed this with her family members, who suggested that breast lump formation is common in the postpartum period and that it is probably due to lactation. She was not convinced and decided to come for a checkup. An ultrasonography of her breast revealed a suspicious lump, which was biopsied, and it was diagnosed to be triple-negative breast cancer, which is often a very aggressive variant of cancer.”
“Due to the lady’s early readiness to seek medical help, thankfully, the lump was located only in her breast and not spread elsewhere. After a few rounds of chemotherapy, she underwent surgery and radiation, and she was cured of her cancer. If she had delayed seeking medical help, the results and outcomes would have been different.”
(This article is based on information available in the public domain and on input provided by experts consulted. Views expressed by experts in the articles are their own; Zee News does not confirm or endorse the same. This article is meant for informational purposes only and must not be considered a substitute for advice provided by qualified medical professionals. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about cancer, diabetes, weight loss, or other medical conditions.)
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