Cancer deaths have declined 20% since 1991, which means there were 1.2 million fewer deaths from cancer in 2009, according to the American Cancer Society.
The overall cancer death rate decreased from 215 per 100,000 in 1991 to 173 per 100,000 in 2009. Death rates declined more sharply for cancers of the lung and prostate in men, for breast cancers in women, and for colon and rectal cancers for men and women. The ACS attributes the drops to decreases in smoking and improvements in early detection and treatment.
Dr. Daniel M. Siegel
The most common causes of cancer death in Americans, accounting for 50% of cancer deaths, are cancers of the lung and bronchus, prostate, and colorectum in men; and cancers of the lung and bronchus, breast, and colorectum in women. This year, there will be 1.6 million cancer cases and 580,350 cancer deaths; lung cancers will account for 25% of cancer deaths in men and women this year, according to estimates from the ACS.
The mortality figures and incidence data are contained in two reports: Cancer Facts & Figures 2013 and Cancer Statistics 2013, both published in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians. (doi:10.3322/caac.21166). The reports were published online on Jan. 18.
Incidence rates are on the decline for most cancers with the exception of melanoma, and liver, thyroid and pancreatic cancer.
Dr. Daniel M. Siegel, president of the American Academy of Dermatology, said in a statement that a rising incidence of melanoma "is particularly concerning because skin cancer can often be easily prevented and detected." Dr. Siegel said that the AAD and its members "are actively working to reduce the incidence of skin cancer and change society’s attitudes and behaviors toward sun exposure and tanning."
Death rates from pancreatic cancer have increased over the last decade, due to what the ACS called "a lack progress in primary prevention, early diagnosis, and treatment of this cancer." The ACS report included a special section devoted to updated information on the occurrence and treatment of pancreatic cancer. Most patients with pancreatic cancer die within a year of diagnosis; the 5-year survival rate is 6%.
The ACS also noted that the disparity in cancer outcomes based on ethnicity and income, "particularly [among] those diagnosed with colorectal or breast cancer where earlier detection and better treatments are credited for the improving trends," said John R. Seffrin, Ph.D., chief executive officer of the ACS, in a statement. "We can and must close this gap so that people are not punished for having the misfortune of being born poor and disadvantaged."
The 5-year survival rate in 2002-2008 for white women with breast cancer, for instance, was 92%, whereas for black women, it was 78%. For colon cancer, the 5-year survival rate was 66% for whites, but 55% for blacks.
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