Cancer death rates drop in US

18 October, 2007

The incidence of cancer deaths is continuing to fall in the United States, at a rate faster than ever.

Deaths from all cancers went down by an average of 2.1% annually from 2002 through 2004, which is nearly twice the annual decrease reported from 1993 to 2002.

Significant declines were seen in deaths from lung, prostate, and colorectal cancers in men and colorectal and breast cancers in women, according to a report prepared by the American Cancer Society (ACS), the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries.

Deaths dropped for the majority of the top 15 cancers in men and women, but the steepest declines were seen in deaths from colorectal cancer.

Increased screening and better treatments led to nearly 5% annual reduction in colorectal cancer mortality among men and 4.5% annual reduction in death rate among women between 2002 and 2004, compared with annual declines of about 2% over the previous two decades.

The incidence of colorectal cancer among men and women also fell over the last decade – by over 2% a year.

According to official figures, only about half of people in the United States who should get screened for colorectal cancer do so.

Lung cancer remains the leading cancer killer of both men and women in the United States, and over of 90% of these deaths can be attributed to smoking, according to the ACS.

Though more men than women still die of lung cancer, lung cancer death rates have been dropping steadily among men while they have been increasing among women. This upward trend has slowed dramatically over the past few years, and now shows signs of stabilizing.

Fall in lung cancer deaths among men are projected to continue as smoking rates continue to drop.

Deaths from breast cancer have dropped by an average of 2% a year since 1990. The incidence of breast cancer fell considerably between 2001 and 2004, with a single-year decrease of about 7% between 2002 and 2003. This is believed to be on account of declines in use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

According to the report, mammography screening has played a big role in the drop in breast cancer deaths. However, screening rates have begun to fall slightly despite a federal program making mammograms available to uninsured women.

The report highlighted cancer incidence and death trends among two medically underserved groups in the United States – American Indians and Alaska Natives.

Poverty rates are roughly three times higher among these populations than among non-Hispanic whites, and health coverage rates for adults are roughly half that of whites.

As a result, these populations were less likely to have highly treatable malignancies like colorectal and breast cancers detected in the early stages.

Lung and colorectal cancer rates were also significantly higher among Northern Plains and Alaska Natives than among non-Hispanic whites.