From Incidence to Inequality: Charting the Global Burden of Testicular Cancer in Adolescents and Young Adults for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

BackgroundThe incidence of testicular cancer (TC) among adolescents and young adults (AYAs: aged 15-39 years) population presents unique biological and epidemiologic characteristics, and there is currently a wide variation in incidence and survival across regions. MethodsThe data on incidence, prevalence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) owing to TC were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease 2021. We quantified differences in the burden of TC among AYA at the socio-demographic index (SDI), regional, and national levels. Decomposition analysis was used to identify the main drivers of variation in the burden. Frontier analysis demonstrated the potential for countries to reduce the burden. ResultsGlobally, there were 28499 new cases, 61596 prevalent cases, 5699 mortality cases, and 376564 DALYs due to TC among AYA in 2021. Between 1990 and 2021, the age-standardized incidence rate (ASIR) and age-standardized prevalence rate (ASPR) increased while the age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR) and age-standardized DALYs rate (ASDR) decreased. Regionally, Southern Latin America exhibited the highest ASRs. Nationally, Monaco ranked highest in ASIR and ASPR, while Mexico had the highest ASMR and ASDR. Population growth and epidemiological changes were major drivers for the burden of DALYs in middle SDI regions, which had the greatest potential for improvement. ConclusionsThe global burden of TC among AYA has risen, which is most pronounced in middle SDI regions. Among the AYA population, TC survivors have increased significantly due to the decreased ASMR and ASDR, who badly need more attention for TC treatment.