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Nation Makes Progress Fighting Cancer but Still No.
1 Killer of Those Under 85
 Jan.
20, 2005 – Death rates from colon, breast, and prostate cancers have
dropped, according to a new report from the American Cancer Society, but
cancer still remains the number two killer in the US, behind heart
disease, but is the top killer of people under 85.
The American Cancer Society says their report -
Cancer Facts &
Figures 2005 - shows that the US is making significant
progress against several of the deadliest and most common cancers in the
country. The report was issued yesterday.
Death rates from colon, breast, and prostate
cancers have dropped and the death rate from lung cancer has also
dropped among men and remained steady among women -- something
considered good news since lung cancer deaths among women were on the
rise for many decades.
Nearly 1.4 million people are expected to develop
cancer this year, according to the report. And about 570,000 Americans
-- nearly 1,600 a day -- are expected to die from it. Although cancer
runs second to heart disease in overall deaths, it is has been the top
killer of people under age 85 since 1999. The four most common cancers
-- lung, colon, breast, and prostate -- account for more than half of
all cancer cases and half of all cancer deaths.
The estimates are based on statistics from the
National Cancer Institute and the National Center for Health Statistics.
An overview of the findings is published in CA: A Cancer Journal for
Clinicians (Vol. 55, No. 1: 10-30).
Lower Rates of Lung, Colon Cancer
Lung cancer
remains the deadliest form of cancer in the US, although it is not the
most common. More than 172,500 new cases and 163,500 deaths are expected
in 2005. However, incidence rates (the percentage of people getting the
disease) have dropped among both men and women in recent years. The
reason: fewer Americans are smoking.
"One of the major influences in cancer trends is
tobacco control,"
said Elizabeth Ward, PhD, director of surveillance research for ACS and
a co-author of the new report. "Continuing these efforts is important.
We need to encourage
cessation
and help people have access to cessation treatments, which can greatly
increase success. We also need to increase efforts to
prevent smoking among
young people, which in the long term will be very important
in reducing rates of smoking-related cancers."
Progress has also been made against
colorectal cancer,
the third most common cancer among both men and women. It is expected to
strike more than 145,000 people and kill more than 56,000 this year.
However, higher screening rates have helped reduce the incidence rate by
nearly 3% each year between 1998 and 2001.
Screening
can find and lead to removal of colon polyps before they become
cancerous.
Breast cancer
and
prostate cancer
remain the most common cancers among women and men, respectively,
accounting for about one-third of all cases. Incidence rates of both
these cancers are increasing, but slowly.
More than 211,000 new cases of invasive breast
cancer and nearly 59,000 cases of non-invasive (in situ) breast cancer
are expected in women in 2005. Even some men -- fewer than 1,700 cases –
will develop this cancer. Nearly 41,000 women and about 460 men are
expected to die from the disease.
About 232,000 new cases of prostate cancer and
30,000 deaths are expected in 2005. African American men are more likely
than whites to develop the disease, and twice as likely to die from it.
Focus on Infections and Cancer
The report says about one-third of all cancers are
caused by smoking and another third are caused by poor nutrition,
obesity, and physical inactivity. For the first time, the report also
includes a special section on infections that can cause cancer.
Worldwide, about 17% of cancers are caused by
infections; in developed countries like the US, only about 7% are. One
reason for highlighting these cancers this year, Ward said, is that many
of them are "highly preventable."
Worldwide, most cases of
liver cancer,
for instance, are caused by infection with the hepatitis B or C virus.
Vaccinating people against hepatitis B could prevent cases due to that
virus. Although there is no vaccine for hepatitis C, measures to prevent
people from passing the infection to others could have an impact. These
include screening blood donors for the disease and using clean needles
in medical procedures in developing countries -- steps common in the US.
In the US, the disease is spread primarily through sex or by injecting
drugs.
Cervical cancer
is also caused by a virus, the
human papilloma virus
(HPV). Screening with a Pap test can find changes in the
cervix before they turn into cancer, or detect cancer when it is still
at a very early stage. In fact, this type of screening is credited with
reducing both the incidence and death rate from cervical cancer in the
US over the past decades. In some other parts of the world, however, Pap
tests are not available. A vaccine against HPV is currently being tested
and may be available in a few years.
The fourth most common cancer in the world is
stomach cancer.
Many stomach cancers are related to an infection with a bacterium called
helicobacter pylori. This infection probably comes from food and water.
The rate of stomach cancer in the US has been dropping for many years,
most likely because of improved sanitary conditions.
ACS has invested more than $18 million in research
to combat infection-related cancers, the report said.
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