Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology, Published online: 19 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41571-026-01165-8Over the past decades, cancer epidemiology trends have substantially shifted in China, with a rapid increase in incidence of cancers that are most common in high-income countries and a substantial decline in incidence of cancers historically prevalent in China. The authors of this Review provide an overview of cancer epidemiology in China, a major contributor to global cancer burden, and discuss national cancer control policies and targets.