Global burden and trends in thyroid cancer among children and adolescents at 5-19 years of age from 1990 to 2019

Abstract Background: The global incidence of thyroid cancer (TC) in adolescents varies but increases in an overall trend. A clear illustration of global burden and trends in TC among a specific age population of 5-19 years favors the early prevention and treatment among children and adolescents. Methods: Global trends in the incidence, prevalence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) of TC among children and adolescents at 5-19 years of age group stratified by age, sex and socio-demographic index (SDI) from 1990 to 2019 were described through data mining in the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 (GBD 2019). Joinpoint regression and decomposition analysis were used to assess temporal trends. Results: The incidence of TC among children and adolescents at 5-19 years of increased from 0.19 (95% UI 0.15, 0.21) per 100,000 individuals in 1990 to 0.26 (95% UI 0.23, 0.28) per 100,000 individuals in 2019. DALYs of TC decreased from 0.83 (95% UI 0.68, 0.94) in 1990 to 0.73 (95% UI 0.64, 0.82) in 2019. The greatest increase in the incidence of TC from 1990 to 2019 was detected in high SDI countries. Conclusions: Despite the declined incidence and mortality of TC within the past three decades, global burden of TC among children and adolescents at 5-19 years of age vary with sex, age and SDI. Targeted measures and effective collaborations among countries with different SDIs are required to improve health care for children and adolescents with thyroid diseases.