Forty percent of all cancers are associated with modifiable risk factors, though there has been a 33% decline in the cancer death rate between 1991 and 2021, according to the American Association for Cancer Research's annual Cancer Progress Report.
Here are 12 key takeaways from the report:
Diagnoses
- The report estimates 2,001,140 new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in 2024.
- Colorectal cancer incidence increased by 1.9% per year between 2011 and 2019 for people younger than 50.
- Cervical cancer incidence increased by 2.5% per year between 2012 and 2019 among women ages 30 to 34.
Death rates on decline
- The report estimates 611,720 people will die from cancer in 2024.
- More than 4.1 million cancer deaths were avoided in the U.S. between 1991 and 2021, representing a 33% decline in the cancer death rate. The report attributes the decline to smoking cessation and advancements made in treatment and early diagnosis.
- The breast cancer death rate declined by 42% between 1989 and 2021. The colorectal cancer death rate declined by 39% between 2000 and 2022.
- Between 1970 and 2021, the overall cancer death in children 14 and younger declined by 70%, and the overall cancer death rate for children ages 15-19 declined by 63%.
Survival
- There were more than 18 million cancer survivors living in the U.S. as of Jan. 1, 2022, and that number is expected to grow to 26 million by 2040.
- The five-year relative survival rate across all cancers increased from 49% in the mid-1970s to 69% for patients diagnosed between 2013 to 2019.
- The five-year relative survival rate for children across all cancers increased from 58% in the mid-1970s to 85% for patients diagnosed between 2013 and 2019, though survival varied greatly within cancer types.
Advancements
- The FDA approved 30 anticancer therapeutics between July 1, 2023, and June 30, 2024.
- Research has fueled advancements in genetic testing, AI, surgery, screening, immunotherapies, noninvasive imaging and radiotheranostics.
Read the full report here.