Key TakeawaysLung cancer mortality continues to drop in the United States, according to a new report from the American Cancer Society.Mortality rates for the disease have been rapidly decreasing since 2009.Experts say that there are many reasons for the decline, including better diagnosis and treatment.
Key Takeaways
Lung cancer mortality continues to drop in the United States, according to a new report from the American Cancer Society.Mortality rates for the disease have been rapidly decreasing since 2009.Experts say that there are many reasons for the decline, including better diagnosis and treatment.
The American Cancer Society (ACS) shared the promising news that lung cancer deaths in the United States have plummeted. The findings were revealed in the ACS annual cancer report, which was published inCA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.
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The Report
Anne Tsao, MDThis information is very exciting and should continue to inspire hope in our patients with lung cancer.
Anne Tsao, MD
This information is very exciting and should continue to inspire hope in our patients with lung cancer.
The researchers noted that the drop in lung cancer mortality is driving a decrease in overall cancer mortality in the United States. In their report, the authors wrote that “Improved treatment accelerated progress against lung cancer and drove a record drop in overall cancer mortality, despite slowing momentum for other common cancers."
The overall cancer death rate has fallen continuously from its peak in 1991 through 2018, for a total decline of 31%. Long‐term declines in mortality have halted for prostate cancer and slowed for breast and colorectal cancers, but accelerated for lung cancer, driving almost half of the total mortality decline from 2014 to 2018.
The researchers point out that the decline translates to 3.2 million fewer cancer deaths than would have happened if peak rates had continued.
The ACS estimates that in the United States in 2021, there will be 1,898,160 new cancer cases and 608,570 cancer deaths.
Lung Cancer: Key Facts
Lung cancer is the second most common cancer in bothmenandwomen.In men, prostate cancer is more common. In women, breast cancer is more common. Additionally, most people who are diagnosed with lung cancer are 65 years old or older.
Lung Cancer
While lung cancer isn’t the most common form of cancer, it makes up almost 25% of all cancer deaths. Each year, more people die of lung cancer than of colon, breast, and prostate cancers combined.
In 2021, the American Cancer Society estimates that there will be about 235,760 new cases of lung cancer and about 131,880 deaths from lung cancer.
Why Lung Cancer Mortality Is Declining
“This information is very exciting and should continue to inspire hope in our patients with lung cancer,”Anne Tsao, MD, professor and section chief of Thoracic/Head & Neck Medical Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, tells Verywell.
Jack Jacoub, MD, medical oncologist and medical director of MemorialCare Cancer Institute at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, California, agrees. “It’s welcome news—and the cancer mortality needle is moved when lung cancer is impacted," he tells Verywell.
What’s behind the steady drop in lung cancer mortality? Experts say that there are a few reasons.
Decreased Smoking Rates
Fewer peoplesmokinghas also contributed to a “continued decline in rates of development of lung cancer, which can occur many years after smoking exposure,”Andreas Saltos, MD, a medical oncologist and clinical research medical director in Moffitt Cancer Center’s thoracic oncology department, tells Verywell.
Improved Screening
How Lung Cancer Is Diagnosed
Better Treatment
Jacoub explains that in the past, all patients with lung cancer received similar treatments regardless of the type of lung cancer they had. Now, treatment is given to patients “based on their particular form of lung cancer."
As a result of the change in approach to treatment, Jacoub says thatpeople with lung cancer are surviving“two, three, four, five, or more years, even with metastatic disease that would have only been given months to live in the past.”
The Different Types of Lung Cancer
Saltos adds that immunotherapytreatmentsand genetically targeted therapies that have been introduced are also contributing to increased survival rates.
The Future of Lung Cancer Mortality
The authors of the report stated that they expect another short-term drop in cancer diagnoses because people aredelaying care during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Andreas Saltos, MDThere is hope that this trend of decreasing mortality will continue into the future.
Andreas Saltos, MD
There is hope that this trend of decreasing mortality will continue into the future.
The researchers also noted that they expect that more people will be diagnosed at a later stage. Jacoub points out thatearly diagnosisis better with any cancer, as it “typically improves outcomes.”
What Is CT Lung Cancer Screening?
Even still, experts remain hopeful that lung cancer deaths will continue to decline. “We are making progress and having an impact,” Tsao says. “While we can now improve and prolong the lives of our lung cancer patients, we need to continue pressing forward with more research in molecular profiling, novel targeted therapies, and immunotherapies.”
Saltos doesn’t expect decreases in lung cancer deaths to stop. “We are continuing to observe more incremental improvements in treatment options and outcomes beyond the breakthroughs of five to 10 years ago. There is hope that this trend of decreasing mortality will continue into the future.”
Jacoub agrees, adding that “There is a momentum that’s building.”
What This Means For YouThe rate of lung cancer deaths is on the decline, and hopefully, that trend will continue. Advances in treatment and better detection have helped people who are diagnosed with lung cancer—even late-stage lung cancer—to live longer. Still, early detection is the best way to improve survival.
What This Means For You
The rate of lung cancer deaths is on the decline, and hopefully, that trend will continue. Advances in treatment and better detection have helped people who are diagnosed with lung cancer—even late-stage lung cancer—to live longer. Still, early detection is the best way to improve survival.
2 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Siegel R, Miller K, Fuchs H, Jemal A.Cancer Statistics, 2021.CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.2021;71(1):7-33. doi:10.3322/caac.21654American Cancer Society.Key Statistics for Lung Cancer.
2 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Siegel R, Miller K, Fuchs H, Jemal A.Cancer Statistics, 2021.CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.2021;71(1):7-33. doi:10.3322/caac.21654American Cancer Society.Key Statistics for Lung Cancer.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Siegel R, Miller K, Fuchs H, Jemal A.Cancer Statistics, 2021.CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.2021;71(1):7-33. doi:10.3322/caac.21654American Cancer Society.Key Statistics for Lung Cancer.
Siegel R, Miller K, Fuchs H, Jemal A.Cancer Statistics, 2021.CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.2021;71(1):7-33. doi:10.3322/caac.21654
American Cancer Society.Key Statistics for Lung Cancer.
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