Burden of colorectal cancer and its risk factors in the North Africa and Middle East (NAME) region, 1990-2019 - a systematic analysis of the global burden of disease study

Sep 21, 2026

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Geographical differences in colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence and in the burden attributable to modifiable risk factors motivate regional analysis. This study estimates CRC burden in the North Africa and Middle East (NAME) from 1990 to 2019 and quantifies the share of risk factors contributing to the burden. Incidence, prevalence, mortality, YLL, YLD, and DALYs are derived from GBD 2019 data, and CRC DALYs linked to lifestyle and metabolic risks are evaluated using comparative risk assessment. Results show rising CRC metrics in NAME with higher rates in males. Dietary risk, low whole grain intake, and low milk intake are major contributors in 2019. The increasing trend supports implementing strategies to reduce CRC burden and related risk factors.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages14

Reading Time35 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Objective

Study design

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Introduction

Haghighatdoost etal. BMC Public Health (2024) 24:557 BMC Public Health [https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-18027-6](https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-18027-6) RESEARCH Open Access Burden of colorectal cancer and its risk factors in the North Africa and Middle East (NAME) region, 1990–2019: a systematic analysis of the global burden of disease study Fahimeh Haghighatdoost 1†, Kamran Mehrabani-Zeinabad2†, Parisa Hajihashemi2*, Noushin Mohammadifard 1 and Peyman Adibi2 Abstract Objective The geographical differences in incidence rates of colorectal cancer (CRC) and its burden due to modifiable risk factors warrant investigating the CRC burden and its risk factors in different regions. In the current study, we aimed to estimate the burden of CRC and the share of its risk factors in the North Africa and Middle East (NAME), from 1990 to 2019. Study design Systematic review. Methods The rates of incidence, prevalence, death, years of life lost (YLL), years lived with disability (YLD), and disability adjusted life years (DALYs) of CRC were estimated through the framework of the Global Burden of Diseases (GBD), Injuries and Risk Factors Study 2019 by age, sex, between 1990 and 2019. The CRC-related DALYs attributable to each lifestyle and metabolic risk factor was also estimated through a comparative risk assessment approach. Results In NAME region, the trends of incidence, prevalence, death, YLL, YLD, and DALYs of CRC were increasing, with higher rates in males than females over this period. High and high-middle socio-demographic index (SDI) countries had greater CRC DALYs rate compared with middle-and low-SDI countries in 2019, except for Palestine [434 .66 (95% UI: 368 . 82, 503 . 88)] . In NAME region, like the global, dietary risk (33 . 18%), low whole grain intake (19 . 79%), and low intake of milk (15 . 77%) were the major contributing risk factors to DALYs due to CRC in 2019. Conclusions Due to increasing trend of CRC burden and the considerable role of lifestyle and metabolic factors in its burden in NAME region, implementing fundamental strategies to minimize CRC burden and its risk factors is imperative. Keywords Global burden of disease, Lifestyle and metabolic risk factors, Colorectal cancer, Disability adjusted life years, North Africa and Middle East †Fahimeh Haghighatdoost and Kamran Mehrabani-Zeinabad contributed equally and both are first authors. *Correspondence: Parisa Hajihashemi [hashemi_p@yahoo.com](hashemi_p@yahoo.com) 1Isfahan Cardiovascular Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran 2Isfahan Gastroenterology and Hepatology Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran © The Author(s) 2024, corrected publication 2024. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit [http://creativecommons](http://creativecommons). org/licenses/by/4.0/. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver ([http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated in a credit line to the data. Haghighatdoost et al. BMC Public Health (2024) 24

FAQs

What is the main objective of this study on colorectal cancer in NAME?

To estimate the CRC burden in the North Africa and Middle East (NAME) from 1990 to 2019 and determine the proportion of the burden attributable to modifiable risk factors.

How are incidence, mortality, and DALYs for CRC estimated?

Through the Global Burden of Diseases (GBD) 2019 framework (Injuries and Risk Factors Study 2019) by age and sex, covering 1990–2019.

Which risk factors contribute most to CRC-related DALYs in NAME in 2019?

Dietary risk is the largest contributor (33.18%), followed by low whole grain intake (19.79%) and low milk intake (15.77%).

What do the study results imply for prevention strategies?

Because CRC burden is increasing and lifestyle and metabolic factors play a substantial role, implementing fundamental strategies to minimize CRC burden and its risk factors is imperative.

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Patrick