Research on trends in cancer incidence has normally examined unmarried sites in populations that enduring ago completed the economic transition. The trends in 11 cancers in three groups in the recently transitioned Hong Kong Chinese population were examined to delineate the part of economic transition and feather generalised etiological insights.

Sex-specific Poisson models were fitted to cancer incidence in Hong Kong (1974–2003) to observe age, extent and birth cohort effects. Cancers were grouped as: hormonally modulated (including breast, endometrium, ovary and prostate), infection-related (cervix, liver, nasopharynx, lymphoma and stomach) and lifestyle-related (colorectum and lung).

Age-standardised incidence of hormonally modulated female cancers increased for the aboriginal time (women born ~1940) to actuality puberty in the transitioning universe of Hong Kong. Prostate cancer incidence increased, in spite of a downturn for the beginning siring growing up in Hong Kong. Incidence of infection-related cancers decreased, particularly due to birth cohort effects; coinciding with birth for liver cancer and lymphoma, with reaching adulthood for cervical and workman nasopharyngeal cancers, and with a period for belly cancer. Lifestyle-related cancers had sex-specific declines by birth cohort.

With economic transition and the associated lifestyle changes, environmentally decided levels of pubertal female hormones may impel intergenerational increases in hormonally related female cancers. Economic development, via improved living conditions, may again lower infection-related cancers, maybe including prostate cancer; however, the object depend on transmission dynamics and possibly particular general health initiatives. In traditional societies, males may boon from economic adding to sooner than females.