Cancer death rates fell for both men and women from 2019 to 2023, continuing a downward trend that has lasted more than 20 years, according to the 2026 Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, published by Henley et al in the journal Cancer. The continued decline in cancer deaths is driven largely by accelerated progress against lung cancer.
The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer provides yearly updates on cancer rates and trends in the United States, and each year includes a special topic of interest. The report is a collaborative effort among the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health; the American Cancer Society; and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACCR). This year, the report examines trends in new U.S. cancer cases from 2003 to 2022 and deaths from 2004 to 2023. The report uses cancer registry data supported by CDC and NCI and compiled by NAACCR, as well as cancer death data from CDC's National Center for Health Statistics.
Focus on Lung Cancer
The special topic of the report focuses on changes in lung cancer risk factors and related outcomes during the first quarter of the 21st century. Despite significant progress, lung cancer remains the second most common cancer in both men and women and the leading cause of cancer death in the United States.
From 2004 to 2023, lung cancer death rates went down 52% in males and 37% in females. The rate of new cases of lung cancer went down 38% in males and 15% in females from 2003 to 2022, and more people were diagnosed at an early stage.
Fewer people are dying from lung cancer for several reasons, including:
- The percentage of adults in the U.S. who smoke cigarettes dropped from 22% in 2001 to 10% in 2024
- People who don't smoke but are exposed to other people's cigarette smoke dropped from 42% in 2001 to 2002 to 24% in 2017 to 2020
- More lung cancers are being found at an early stage due to lung cancer screening
- Advances in treatment have led to people living longer after a lung cancer diagnosis.
Researchers noted that, beyond further reductions in cigarette smoking and supporting tobacco-free environments, sustaining progress against lung cancer may depend on access to early cancer detection, timely diagnosis, and state-of-the-art treatment.
Overall Trends
The report also examines trends in new U.S. cancer cases from 2003 to 2022. The rate of new cancer cases went up about 0.2% per year from 2018 to 2022. This rise was driven by more females being diagnosed with cancer (rates increased 0.4% per year), and the rate of new female breast cancer cases went up. The overall rate of new cancer cases stayed about the same for males, but the rate of new prostate cancer cases continued to rise.
Other key findings include:
- From 2004 to 2023, lung cancer death rates went down 52% in males and 37% in females
- Among people between the ages of 15 and 39 years, the rate of getting cancer stayed about the same from 2018 to 2022, and the rate of dying from cancer went down slightly each year from 2004 to 2023
- Among children who are newborns to age 14, the rate of getting cancer has gone down since 2015, and the rate of dying from cancer went down slightly each year from 2004 to 2023.
Cancer Trends in Racial and Ethnic Groups
- Black males had the highest rate of cancer incidence overall and the highest rate of prostate cancer incidence
- Black females had a higher rate of dying from breast cancer compared to females of other races/ethnicities
- Colorectal cancer is the second most common cancer among Hispanic males and females, while lung cancer is second among other groups
- American Indian/Alaskan Native people had some of the highest cancer rates in young age groups
- American Indian/Alaska Native people had higher rates of liver cancer, with death rates from liver cancer being nearly double that of White people.
DISCLOSURE: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit acsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com.
