Cancer has become the first leading cause of death in the world, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Facing the increasing trend of
cancer incidence and mortality, China issued and implemented "three-early (early prevention, early diagnosis and early treatment)" national
cancer prevention plan. As the main body and dependence of social governance, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) take over the role of government in the field of
cancer prevention and treatment. American Cancer Society (ACS) made a research on
cancer NGOs and civil society in
cancer control and found that
cancer NGOs in developing countries mobilize civil society to work together and advocate governments in their countries to develop policies to address the growing
cancer burden. Union for International
Cancer Control (UICC),
Cancer Council Australia (CCA), and Malaysian
cancer NGOs are the representatives of
cancer NGOs in promoting
cancer control. Selecting Chinese Anti-
Cancer Association (
CACA) as an example in China, this article is to investigate how NGOs undertake systematic
cancer prevention work in China. By conducting real case study, we found that, as a NGO,
CACA plays a significant role in intensifying the leading role of government in
cancer control, optimizing
cancer outcomes, decreasing
cancer incidence and mortality rates and improving public health.