KIGALI, Rwanda — This could be an important year for defining priorities around noncommunicable diseases, or NCDs — an often overlooked area in global health.
In September, when world leaders meet at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, they will participate in a high-level meeting focused on how the world should tackle the growing burden of NCDs.
NCDs, such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and respiratory illness, killed at least 43 million people in 2021, which equated to 75% of nonpandemic related deaths that year — with the majority of premature deaths from NCDs happening in low- and middle-income countries.