Report: Cancer death rates continue to decline overall

Overall cancer death rates continue to decline for U.S. men, women and children, according to the latest Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, released today. Death rates for all cancers and ages combined decreased an average 1.8 percent per year for males and 1.4 percent per year for females between 2012 and 2016. Overall cancer incidence, or rates of new cancers, fell an average 2.1 percent per year for males and were stable for females between 2011 and 2015. Black men and black women had the highest cancer death rates, while black men and white women had the highest overall cancer incidence rates. The report includes a special section on adults aged 20-49, which shows both incidence and death rates higher among women than men in that age group. “Major declines overall in cancer mortality point in the right direction, yet significant differences remain in cancer cases and deaths based on gender, ethnicity and race,” said Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield, M.D. The annual report is produced by the National Cancer Institute, CDC, American Cancer Society and North American Association of Central Cancer Registries.