WHO measures inequalities in chronic diseases worldwide

The World Health Organization presented on 20 October 2026 a report dedicated to inequalities in access to prevention and care for noncommunicable diseases. The document, titled State of Inequality: noncommunicable diseases, examines four groups of conditions: cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease and diabetes.

The report’s approach does not look only at how widespread these diseases are, but at how the likelihood of falling ill, receiving a timely diagnosis and accessing appropriate treatment changes depending on certain starting conditions. WHO identifies five main variables: income, level of education, gender, age and place of residence.

These are factors that come into play at different points along the healthcare pathway. Income and place of residence affect the availability of diagnostic services and the physical or economic distance separating a person from a facility capable of detecting a cancer or cardiovascular condition in time. Education, by contrast, comes into play earlier, in the ability to recognise symptoms and navigate the available treatment options. Gender and age, finally, according to the report, alter both exposure to risk factors and the way health systems respond to the needs of different population groups.

This cross-variable reading sets the report apart from a simple count of cases. The choice to focus on cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease and diabetes reflects four of the main families of chronic disease at the global level, united by long care pathways in which repeated access to services — not a single intervention — determines the patient’s outcome.

It should be noted that the news currently comes from a single source (WHO, State of Inequality: noncommunicable diseases report); no independent confirmation is available at the time of publication.

The available summary of the report focuses on describing the mechanisms of inequality linked to income, education, gender, age and territory, rather than on an overall numerical account of mortality or prevalence for the four conditions examined. It was presented on 20 October 2026 and remains the World Health Organization’s most recent reference on the subject.