Annual Report 2024
Division of Population Data Science
Kota Katanoda, Kayo Togawa, Hirokazu Tanaka, Sayo Tanaka, Babu Hellen Wairimu, Tshewang Gyeltshen, Hasan Jamil, Kazuaki Arai, Abubakar Aminu Kende, Yuki Kimura, Chikage Orito, Chinatsu Kojima
Introduction
The Division of Population Data Science develops and analyzes comprehensive cancer statistics information including cancer registry data to contribute to the development and evaluation of evidence-based cancer control.
The Team and What We Do
With the aim to clarify the cancer burden in our society and realize optimal cancer control policies, our research focuses on descriptive epidemiology and policy evaluation by leveraging national and international cancer statistics, geographic information systems (GISs), and other sources of information. More specifically, we describe cancer trends, geographical patterns, prevention, screening, and other phases of the cancer control continuum, and also evaluate cancer control measures using mathematical approaches such as simulation modelling and health economics.
Research Activities
1. Cancer statistics website "Cancer Information Service"
Cancer statistics data and graphical information such as cancer incidence, mortality and survival are provided on the website "Cancer Information Service", managed by Institute for Cancer Control. Our analysis using cancer statistics information is published as a scientific publication in the Japanese Journal of Clinical Oncology (JJCO) and other academic journals. For the general public, the booklet "Cancer Statistics" is also published annually. This fiscal year, we provided cancer mortality data for 2023 and cancer incidence data for 2020 and published the booklet "Cancer statistics in Japan 2025".
2. Research on cancer statistics and cancer control
Cancer statistics information is analyzed and combined with information on cancer prevention, early detection, diagnosis, treatment, palliative care, and health economics to develop and evaluate cancer control policies. This fiscal year, we examined the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on mortality and the impact of tobacco control policies including the amendment of the Health Promotion Act.
3. Others
Our research activities also cover a variety of analysis on cancer and life-style related diseases prevention, early detection, treatment, etc. In this fiscal year, the cost-effectiveness of cervical cancer control in Japan was examined.
Education
Graduate students were openly recruited in our division under the framework of a joint graduate school in the field of Cancer Statistics and Informatics in collaboration with Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine. Job training opportunities were provided for graduate students at the School of Public Health, St. Luke's International University in the scope of setting up a future joint graduate school program. We also gave lectures and provided training for fifth-grade medical students at Teikyo University, School of Medicine, regarding cancer statistics and tobacco control.
Future Prospects
Based on the development and analysis of cancer statistics information, we aim to realize effective and efficient cancer control measures through the cancer control continuum from prevention to treatment and palliative care.
List of papers published in 2024
Journal
1. Tabuchi T, Takenobu K, Katanoda K. Statement of Continued Commitment to the Issue of Tobacco Industry Money. Nicotine & tobacco research, 27:564-565, 2025
2. Tanaka H, Nomura S, Katanoda K. Changes in Mortality During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan: Descriptive Analysis of National Health Statistics up to 2022. Journal of epidemiology, 35:154-159, 2025
3. Kitadai R, Yazaki S, Kuchiba A, Yamanaka T, Shiino S, Yamauchi C, Harano K, Saito M, Hirotsu Y, Aiba H, Yoshida T, Hamamoto R, Shimizu C, Shimomura A, Kojima Y, Shimoi T, Momozawa Y, Sudo K, Yoshida M, Sunami K, Hori M, Katanoda K, Shimada Y, Yamashita Y, Kogawa T, Murata T, Fujiwara S, Miyagi Y, Nakagomi H, Tachibana K, Omata M, Ohtake T, Suto A, Onishi T, Naito Y, Yamashita T, Yonemori K, Kohno T, Shiraishi K. Germline Pathogenic Variants and Clinical Outcomes in Asian Patients With Breast Cancer. Cancer science, 116:1048-1058, 2025
4. Sigel B, Withrow DR, Veiga LHS, Saito E, Matsuda T, Katanoda K. Adult brain cancer incidence patterns: A comparative study between Japan and Japanese Americans. International journal of cancer, 157:436-444, 2025
5. Oka E, Okada M, Ikuno Y, Amano K, Shioya S, Kawabata M, Sakurai R, Konishi M, Nakaya T, Katanoda K, Ueda Y, Ito Y. Area Socioeconomic Status, Vaccination Access, and Female Human Papillomavirus Vaccination. JAMA network open, 8:e250747, 2025
6. Yang SL, Togawa K, Gilmour S, Leon ME, Soerjomataram I, Katanoda K. Projecting the impact of implementation of WHO MPOWER measures on smoking prevalence and mortality in Japan. Tobacco control, 33:295-301, 2024
7. Kyriakos CN, Erinoso O, Driezen P, Thrasher JF, Katanoda K, Quah ACK, Tabuchi T, Perez CA, Seo HG, Kim SY, Nordin ASA, Hairi FM, Fong GT, Filippidis FT. Prevalence and perceptions of flavour capsule cigarettes among adults who smoke in Brazil, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia and Mexico: findings from the ITC surveys. BMJ open, 14:e083080, 2024
8. Ota M, Taniguchi K, Hori M, Katanoda K, Nakata K, Miyashiro I, Matsuda T, Lee SW, Ito Y. Trends in patterns of treatment and survival of colorectal cancer patients using cancer registry data in Japan: 1995-2015. Cancer science, 115:2786-2794, 2024
9. Ong SK, Abe SK, Gek Phua GL, Jayasekara H, Togawa K, Gatellier L, Kim J, Zhang Y, Kahan SZ, Yusof SN, Han JS, Pramesh CS, Sengar M, Shankar A, Cairo C, Sangrajran S, Nansalmaa E, Badamsuren T, Dendup T, Tshering K, He J, Werdi Nindito D RS, Ritana A, Im JS, Park EY, Huong GN, Thanh Huong TT, Biglari M, Yusuf A, Pradhananga KK, Vongdala C, Bin Jaafar MT, Ibrahim Tamin NS, Myint YY, Kaung KK, Rahman MS, Fernando E, Rath B, Sukumaran B, Hwang WY, Espina C, Schüz J, Inoue M, Matsuda T. Mapping recommendations towards an Asian Code Against Cancer (ACAC) as part of the World Code Against Cancer Framework: an Asian National Cancer Centers Alliance (ANCCA) initiative. The Lancet regional health. Southeast Asia, 24:100316, 2024
10. Kim J, Macharia PM, McCormack V, Foerster M, Galukande M, Joffe M, Cubasch H, Zietsman A, Anele A, Offiah S, Parham G, Pinder LF, Anderson BO, Schüz J, Dos Santos-Silva I, Togawa K. Geospatial disparities in survival of patients with breast cancer in sub-Saharan Africa from the African Breast Cancer-Disparities in Outcomes cohort (ABC-DO): a prospective cohort study. The Lancet. Global health, 12:e1111-e1119, 2024
11. Miura M, Tabuchi T, Amano H, Katanoda K. Evaluation of the Association Between Sedentary Time and Low Work Engagement in the Work Environment After COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study of Japanese Workers. Cureus, 16:e62725, 2024
12. Sato A, Tanaka H, Tabuchi T, Katanoda K. Occupational differences in SARS-CoV-2 infection: the Japan COVID-19 and Society Internet Survey (JACSIS) study in 2022. BMC public health, 24:2841, 2024
13. Togawa K, Fong GT, Quah ACK, Meng G, Xu SS, Quimet J, Mochizuki Y, Yoshimi I, Odani S, Tabuchi T, Katanoda K. Impacts of revised smoke-free regulations under the 2020 Japan Health Promotion Act on cigarette smoking and heated tobacco product use in indoor public places and homes: findings from 2018 to 2021 International Tobacco Control (ITC) Japan Surveys. Tobacco control, tc-2024-058697, 2024