Toxic heavy metal contamination in fish sources poses significant health risks, particularly in populations that rely on fish as a primary dietary component. Thus, this study aimed to assess the concentrations of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) in selected tuna species and evaluate the associated health risks and cancer burdens to consumers in Ghana through a systematic review and meta-analysis of data covering the period 2015 to 2019. A Disability Adjusted Life Year (DALY) approach was used to quantify the health burden with secondary data from the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). Median contaminant exposure was 1.26 × 10-5  mg/kg(bw)-day for Cd, and 1.04 × 10-4  mg/kg(bw)-day for Pb. The highest DALY was found in the elderly age group (55-89) and it ranged from 10-5 - 10-3. The results indicate that in the elderly age group, stomach cancer was the most prevalent for both males and females, reflecting a significant cancer burden. For elderly males, prostate cancer was also a severe concern, contributing to the overall cancer burden, although its prevalence was lower than that of stomach cancer. In elderly females, however, pancreatic cancer was observed to have a higher prevalence compared to males, indicating gender-specific differences in cancer risk among older adults. The findings underscore the need for public health interventions to mitigate the risks of heavy metal contamination in fish.

The authors have declared no competing interest.

The author(s) received no specific funding for this work.

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Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology as part PhD research.

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