From a 33.3% to 43.7% five-year cancer survival rate increase over the past decade, behind this lies a revolution concerning life, science, and hope.
In the global battle against cancer, China is quietly leading a revolution. Data shows that the five-year survival rate for Chinese cancer patients has increased from 33.3% a decade ago to 43.7% in 20232 .
This significant progress means an additional 500,000 lives are saved each year2 . Behind these life-saving miracles stands the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association - an organization that brings together China's top oncology experts, doctors, and researchers.
The Chinese Anti-Cancer Association (CACA), founded in 1984, is a non-profit oncology organization1 . Over nearly forty years, it has grown into China's largest cancer institution with a network covering 31 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions6 .
The association has 187 professional branches, 118 organizational members, and over 700,000 individual members6 , forming the backbone of China's anti-cancer efforts.
As an official member of the International Union Against Cancer (UICC), CACA has been closely collaborating with global organizations since 19971 , contributing Chinese expertise to the international stage while promoting the development of cancer prevention and treatment in China.
Organize scientific cooperation, promote multidisciplinary exchange in oncology, train professionals, and mobilize social forces to participate in cancer prevention knowledge dissemination1 .
Professional Branches
Individual Members
Provinces Covered
Facing the complex enemy that is cancer, the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association has explored a distinctive path - Integrated Medicine.
"Integrated medicine is a holistic treatment approach that considers the patient's overall clinical condition to provide personalized treatment," explained Professor Fan Daiming, President of CACA2 .
This treatment method integrates Western medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine, nutritional support, and psychological counseling, even utilizing artificial intelligence tools to develop personalized treatment plans for patients2 .
Integrated medicine is not simply an accumulation of treatment methods but rather breaks down disciplinary barriers, integrating the entire process from prevention, diagnosis, and treatment to rehabilitation, psychological support, and hospice care3 .
It not only focuses on treating the tumor itself but also emphasizes health management throughout the patient's entire life cycle3 .
One of the most influential contributions of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association is the development of a series of tumor management guidelines - the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association Guidelines for Holistic Integrative Management of Cancer (CACA Guidelines).
These guidelines, released in 2023, have been translated into 16 languages and are used as reference materials by medical institutions in over 150 countries2 3 .
The CACA guidelines cover 53 types of cancer and 60 diagnosis and treatment technologies, contributing Chinese wisdom to the global fight against cancer6 .
The core characteristic of the guidelines is their integrative nature. Academician Fan Daiming pointed out that this systematic "Chinese solution" provides valuable theoretical support and practical pathways for building localized, high-efficiency cancer prevention and control systems8 .
Especially for developing countries, the CACA guidelines offer a more practical anti-cancer model.
The international influence of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association partly stems from its active global cooperation. In January 2025, the association co-hosted the "2025 CACA-OncoDaily-SPCC Cancer Summit: Connecting Continents" with OncoDaily, the Society for Sharing Progress in Cancer Care (SPCC), and the World Association for Integrative Oncology (WAIO)6 .
This conference, held via Zoom webinar, provided simultaneous translation in English and Chinese and attracted over 20 million participants6 , setting an unprecedented scale.
Additionally, in August 2025, the association co-hosted the China-France Anti-Cancer Summit, attracting audiences from China, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italy, Spain, Canada, and Peru, with over 14.8 million online views8 .
Such extensive global participation demonstrates the high level of international medical community attention to China's progress in cancer prevention and treatment.
To specifically illustrate the work of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association, let's delve into the association's efforts regarding neuroendocrine tumors (NENs).
Neuroendocrine tumors are a group of rare tumors originating from peptidergic neurons and neuroendocrine cells4 . They can occur in various parts of the body, particularly in the lungs, gastrointestinal tract, and pancreas.
Studies at home and abroad indicate that the incidence of NENs is rising4 . Facing this challenge, the Neuroendocrine Tumor Professional Committee of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association organized relevant field experts in 2024 to formulate the "Chinese Anti-Cancer Association Guidelines for Diagnosis and Treatment of Neuroendocrine Tumors (2025 Edition)"4 .
These experts updated and revised relevant content based on the 2022 edition of the guidelines, the latest domestic and international guidelines and consensus, and the latest clinical research results.
Neuroendocrine tumors exhibit high heterogeneity. Even within the same tissue or organ, NENs with different classifications and grades show significantly different biological behaviors4 . This high heterogeneity determines the difficulty and complexity of diagnosis.
For the diagnosis and treatment of neuroendocrine tumors, the association's guidelines emphasize the need for integrated diagnosis combining clinical symptoms, specific biomarkers, endoscopy, ultrasound, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and various functional imaging methods4 .
Treatment covers endoscopic therapy, surgical treatment, interventional therapy, drug therapy, radiotherapy, and peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT).
| Tumor Type | Location |
|---|---|
| Pituitary Neuroendocrine Tumor | Pituitary |
| Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma | Thyroid |
| Pheochromocytoma/Paraganglioma | Adrenal/Other |
| Merkel Cell Carcinoma | Skin |
The efforts of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association have translated into concrete results. In addition to the improvement in overall cancer survival rates, significant progress has also been made in specific cancer types and management approaches.
The five-year survival rate for Chinese cancer patients increased from 33.3% a decade ago to 43.7% in 20232 , with this progress directly translating to approximately 500,000 lives saved annually.
Data shows that China recorded approximately 4.83 million new malignant tumor cases in 20222 . Among these, nearly 1.59 million cases were diagnosed as digestive system tumors, such as colorectal cancer, liver cancer, gastric cancer, esophageal cancer, and pancreatic cancer2 .
It is worth noting that the cancer mortality rate for males is approximately twice that of females9 . Between 2019 and 2025, mortality rates for liver cancer and pancreatic cancer in males are projected to rise, while mortality rates for the six major cancers in females are all expected to increase9 .
Facing future challenges, the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association continues to promote multi-field cooperation and innovation. The association is promoting a new approach called "Evaluation-Support-Control-Protection-Life", embodying China's unique experience in cancer diagnosis, treatment, and management8 .
Prevention will become the focus of future work. Data indicates that cancers attributable to lifestyle risk factors account for 44.7% of all cancer cases3 .
Professor Piao Haozhe suggested that the public adopt healthy lifestyles and actively participate in cancer screening, especially those with a family history of cancer3 .
The association is also committed to promoting supportive care. Professor Florian Scott, at the 2025 China-France Anti-Cancer Summit, looked forward to the "Supportive Care 2030" initiative, calling for multidisciplinary cooperation to comprehensively improve the level of oncology supportive care8 .
Academician Fan Daiming, President of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association, pointed out that China should develop guidelines with local characteristics, integrating the advantages of Chinese and Western medicine, and comprehensively focusing on cancer prevention, rehabilitation, and patient quality of life8 .
From the headquarters office in Tianjin to over 150 countries worldwide, from laboratory research to clinical practice, the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association is building an invisible Great Wall against cancer.
The association's CACA guidelines have become an important window for the international medical community to understand China's anti-cancer experience.
Each step forward means more families can continue to enjoy the joy of reunion.
The path to fighting cancer remains long, but the "Chinese solution" of integrated medicine is allowing the world to see more hope and possibilities.