A new report released Tuesday by the American Cancer Society offers good news: Americans who had cancer in 2018 were less likely to die from it than a year earlier, leading to a steady decline in cancer deaths over the past 30 years. As hopeful as this trend is, there are still lower survival rates in various parts of the country and among black Americans. Experts also fear that the Covid-19 pandemic will erase some of this progress.
The report is the last in a long-running annual series led by the American Cancer Society. It is based on data collected by the federal government and states, including information on diagnosed cancer cases. This data is then used by the authors to estimate cancer diagnoses and deaths in the coming year. It takes time to collect and fully analyze this data, so the most recent report only covers 2018.
The number of total cancer deaths in the US is increasing slightly each year due to the growing population. But the chance that someone dies from them cancer – in other words – the death rate from cancer fell again in 2018. Compared to 2017, the cancer death rate decreased by 2.4% in 2018, the second consecutive year in which the death rate showed a record decline. Since 1991, the overall death rate from cancer has fallen by 31%, accounting for about 3 million avoided deaths during that time.
According to the authors, there are a number of reasons for this continued decline. For example, in the past three decades, Americans smoked less and were more likely to be screened for cancer. Improvements in treatment have also helped, especially in recent years for a type of lung cancer known as non-small cell lung cancer. While lung cancer remains the most common cause of death, these improvements have contributed to lower lung cancer mortality than any other cancer in the past five years.
However, despite the successes, there are still underlying differences in cancer care. The death rate in some states is much higher than others, such as Mississippi and much of the Southeast, likely due to the lack of access to health care for many residents. And while the cancer care gap between black and white Americans has narrowed over time, it still exists. For example, the average five-year cancer survival rate among white Americans between 2010 and 2016 was 68%, compared to 63% for black Americans. Thousands of women also die each year from cervical cancer, which is now almost completely preventable through screening and the HPV vaccine – but vaccination coverage (about 50%) among teens is still well below the near-universal rates reported in other countries. seen.
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“While recent advancements in the treatment of lung cancer and several other cancers are cause for celebration, it is worrying to see the persistent racial, socioeconomic and geographic disparities for highly preventable cancers,” said William Cance, chief medical and scientific officer. division of the American Cancer Society, said in one statement released with the report.
The report estimates that nearly 1.9 million new cancer cases will be diagnosed this year and that 608,570 Americans will eventually die. However, this estimate does not take into account the covid-19 pandemic, which began in late 2019 and continues to strike across the country and the world. Studies and experts have warned that Americans’ access to cancer care has been affected by the pandemic, by reducing or even delay treatment. This may not only affect the cancer mortality rate in 2020, but also for years to come.
“We expect disruptions to access to cancer care in 2020 will lead to downstream increases in advanced-stage diagnoses that could hinder progress in reducing cancer death rates in the coming years,” said lead author Rebecca Siegel in the ACS. statement.