Cancer mortality drops record-high in America over the year

On January 8, researchers reported the largest annual decline in cancer mortality in the US, which they attribute to success in treating lung tumors, writes Fox Business.

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According to a new report by the American Cancer Society, the total cancer mortality rate has been falling by about 1991% per year since 1,5. According to Rebecca Siegel, lead author of the study, this is the biggest drop in national cancer statistics from before 1930.

“The statistics are absolutely driven by lung cancer,” she says, “about a quarter of all cancer deaths. Take lung cancer off the list and the 2017 figure drops 1,4%.”

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Government researchers previously reported a slightly lower drop in cancer deaths over the same period. But the cancer society calculates the death rate differently, and on January 8 it said the decline was large - and even record-breaking.

Most cases of lung cancer are related to smoking. Decades of smoking control have led to a decrease in lung cancer incidence and mortality from this disease. However, according to Siegel, the decline in mortality seems to have accelerated thanks to recent advances in the treatment of lung cancer.

Improvements in surgery, improved diagnostic scanning and more accurate use of radiation methods are in first place on the list. The effects of new drugs are also noted.

Genetic testing can now identify specific cancer cell mutations that allow for more targeted therapy using new pharmaceuticals that go beyond traditional chemotherapy.

"It's an exciting time," said Dr. Jyoti Patel, a lung cancer expert at Northwestern University.

According to her, even patients with advanced cancer survive for several years, not months, after the start of treatment.

“This was very, very unusual just a decade ago,” she said.

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According to Patel, new immunotherapy drugs can accelerate the decline in mortality.

Cancer Society researchers also found that:

• overall cancer mortality declined by almost 30% from 1991 to 2017;
• Mortality rates from one type of skin cancer have fallen even more sharply than from lung cancer, recently falling by 7% per year. This decline in melanoma patients is due to drugs that came to market about 9 years ago;
• the decline in mortality from cancer of the prostate, breast and colon slows down for a number of reasons;
• the increase in mortality from liver cancer seems to have leveled off a bit. This may be due to more effective treatment for hepatitis C, which is associated with approximately 25% of liver cancer cases, Siegel said.

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