Study: Deaths from most common lung cancer fall sharply as treatments advance

Incidence-based mortality for the most common U.S. lung cancer fell about 6% per year between 2013 and 2016 as treatment advances accelerated previous declines, according to a study reported this week in the New England Journal of Medicine.

“This analysis shows for the first time that nationwide mortality rates for the most common category of lung cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, are declining faster than its incidence, an advance that correlates with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of several targeted therapies for this cancer in recent years,” said Douglas Lowy, M.D., National Cancer Institute deputy director and co-author of the study.