Empowering Women, Advancing Equity: Policy Insights for China from the Lancet Commission’s Women, Power, and Cancer Report

The Women, Power, and Cancer report recently released by The Lancet1 represents the first global effort to examine cancer through an intersectional feminist lens. This report systematically exposes the structural barriers faced by women in the areas of cancer prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and care. The framework of the report is closely aligned with China’s Healthy China 20302 strategy, with significant policy implications for strengthening the nation’s cancer control systems. Globally, cancer is one of the top 3 causes of premature death among women. Approximately 2.3 million women die prematurely from cancer each year, and nearly two-thirds of these deaths could be prevented by early detection or intervention. The burden of these avoidable deaths is disproportionately concentrated in countries with a low Human Development Index, where the premature mortality rate among women can reach as high as 72%.1 Asia accounts for 49.2% of cancer cases and 56.1% of cancer deaths worldwide.3 As the region’s largest developing country, China exemplifies these regional challenges, facing the dual challenges of a high disease burden and persistent health inequities. The incidence of breast cancer continues to increase rapidly, and the urban–rural gap in cervical cancer mortality is widening. Within this context, China’s policy responses are not only domestically significant but also serve as a global benchmark for gender-equitable cancer control. The intersectional feminist methodology of the Women, Power, and Cancer report highlights 3 forms of inequality: unequal health outcomes, institutional discrimination and resource bias, and systemic imbalances in leadership and voice. These patterns closely mirror the challenges observed with regard to China’s current cancer control plan. Policy Recommendations for Gender-Equitable Cancer Control Establish an Equitable, Accessible, and Intersectionally Sensitive System Cancer control policies should be grounded in the principles of equity, accessibility, cultural adaptability, and intersectional sensitivity across the cancer continuum, which comprises prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation/palliative care.1 Prevention and early screening policies should prioritize cervical and breast cancer screening programs delivered through mobile clinics, reimbursement coverage, and self-sampling initiatives that target rural, older, and low-income women. Policies targeting diagnosis and precision prevention should focus on the development of a closed-loop system to integrate risk assessment, genetic counseling, proactive follow-up, and individualized preventive interventions. Policies for treatment and recovery should cover specialized nursing, psychosocial support, nutrition management, and rehabilitation as standard components of care.1,4 Advanced Gender-Responsive Cancer Policy Gender-responsive cancer control systems must be embedded into health policies to achieve health equity. Gender analysis and impact assessments should be applied systematically during policymaking efforts, program design, and performance evaluations. A stratified health data infrastructure should be established to capture variables such as biological sex, social gender, age, and socioeconomic status.1,4 Service delivery is recommended to target cancers with a high prevalence among women and to enhance accessibility and adherence among populations with limited access to services through insurance expansion, mobile screening, and culturally adapted health promotion. Women’s representation and leadership should be strengthened in both research and clinical practice to ensure that gender-sensitive research and balanced participation in clinical trials are prioritized.1,4 Develop a Feminist Economics Approach A feminist economics approach reframes informal caregiving from an invisible, unpaid form of labor into measurable and remunerable work. Building a national system to account for caregiving labor will involve incorporating care work into health statistics and national health accounts, while achieving valuation through replacement cost and opportunity cost methods.1 China should improve its financing and compensation mechanisms by gradually integrating family caregiving services into health insurance coverage and providing subsidies and career support to primary caregivers.4 Intersectoral collaborations among health institutions, community organizations, and families will be essential facilitators of efforts to offer psychological counseling and professional training to caregivers.1,4 Nursing Strategies to Promote Gender-Equitable Cancer Care Develop Gender-Sensitive Data and Decision Systems Nursing information systems should include core indicators that capture gender, age, and socioeconomic determinants. The integration of internationally recognized gender-sensitive data standards will enhance the quality of decision-making. Advanced tools such as artificial intelligence can facilitate risk stratification and gender-differentiated intervention models, with the goal of improving precision and fairness in clinical nursing practice.1,4 Strengthen the Nursing Workforce and Leadership Capacity Gender sensitivity and intersectionality should be embedded in nursing education and professional development. Training curricula must include topics related to gender equity, antidiscrimination, and psychosocial support. Women nurses should be encouraged to assume oncology leadership roles in academic development, policy formulation, and management and supported by transparent promotion systems and incentive mechanisms.1,4 Conclusion: Toward Gender-Equitable Cancer Care in China The Lancet’s landmark report provides visionary guidance to direct the future of oncology and nursing in China. Moving forward, national efforts should focus on developing gender-disaggregated data governance, strengthening caregivers’ economic valuation and compensation, and facilitating a diverse, inclusive nursing environment. Through intersectoral legislation, collaboration, and global partnerships, China can build a high-quality, gender-equitable cancer care system and thus contribute meaningful insights to inform global health governance.