Unmasking Hidden Disparities: A Comparison of Female Breast Cancer Incidence, Mortality, and Management Strategy in China, the Republic of Korea, and Japan

Breast cancer remains the leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women worldwide, with significant variations in incidence and mortality across regions. It is the number one cancer among women in many Asian countries such as China, the Republic of Korea, and Japan. However, most of the articles analysed the data for Asia, especially these three East Asian countries as a whole. To explore whether the data from these three countries can be integrated, this study compared and summarized the similarities and differences in female breast cancer incidence, mortality, screening methods and available treatments between the three countries. We used estimated data from the Global Burden of Diseases (GBD) 2021 to compare the differences in breast cancer incidence and mortality between the three countries from 1990 to 2021. To compare the screening and treatment options, we summarized government and hospital guidelines for breast cancer treatment in countries. We found that the incidence in Japan was higher than China and Korea, and the increase over time has shown varying trends among countries. The mortality in China and Korea is stable, but in Japan older population continues to rise. Different screening and diagnostic methods available in each country may be related to the differences in breast cancer incidence and mortality. The study showed that there are similarities and differences in female breast cancer incidence and mortality as well as management strategies in these three countries. We would recommend future studies to evaluate these differences before conducting a pooled analysis in female breast cancer.