Northeast India's Aizawl, East Khasi Hills, Papumpare, Kamrup Urban, and Mizoram consistently recorded the highest rates of cancer between 2015 and 2019, according to a study.

The cross-sectional study used data from 43 population-based cancer registries (PBCRs) across India.

Between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2019, as many as 7.08 lakh cancer cases and 2.06 lakh deaths were reported from 43 PBCRs across India. Women accounted for a higher proportion of cancer cases, and men for deaths due to it.

Women comprised 51.1 per cent of the total cancer cases and 45 per cent of the deaths. Men, on the other hand, accounted for 48.9 per cent of the disease incidents and 55 per cent of the deaths due to it.

The study obtained population-at-risk data from the Census of India, and the findings were assessed by registry area.

According to the study, the lifetime risk of developing cancer in India was 11.0 per cent. However, in Mizoram, the reported lifetime risk was a staggering 21.1 per cent in males and 18.9 per cent in females. Aizawl district reported the highest age-adjusted incidence rate (AAIR) in both males and females.

The most common types of cancers were oral, lung, and prostate in males and breast, cervical, and ovarian in females, the study found.

Among metropolitan cities -- with a population of over 1 million-- Delhi had the highest overall cancer AAIR for males, while Srinagar recorded the highest AAIR for lung cancer.

Oral cancer showed significant increases in 14 PBCRs among males and four PBCRs among females.

The analysis revealed a distinct pattern in the leading cancer sites across India. Among males, lung cancer emerged as the most frequently diagnosed form of the disease in the southern regions and metropolitan cities, including Visakhapatnam, Bengaluru, Malabar, Kollam, Thiruvananthapuram, Chennai, and Delhi.