Two out of three Americans with invasive cancer are living more than five years

Α report by Henley et al from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report indicates that “two out of three Americans with invasive cancer are living five years or more after diagnosis.”

     

Because of improvements in early detection and treatment of cancer, the proportion of persons with cancer who survive more than 5 years after diagnosis has increased. The authors analyzed data from U.S. Cancer Statistics (USCS) for 2011. 

In 2011, a total of 1,532,066 invasive cancers were diagnosed and reported to central cancer registries in the United, including 786,102 among males and 745,964 among females. The age-adjusted annual incidence for all cancers was 451 per 100,000 population: 508 per 100,000 in males and 410 per 100,000 in females. Among persons aged <20 years, 14,754 cancer cases were diagnosed in 2011. By age group, rates per 100,000 population in 2011 were 18 among persons aged <20 years, 154 among those aged 20–49 years, 816 among those aged 50–64 years, 1,840 among those aged 65–74 years, and 2,223 among those aged ≥75 years.

By cancer site, rates were highest for cancers of the prostate (128 per 100,000 men), female breast (122 per 100,000 women), lung and bronchus (61 per 100,000 persons), and colon and rectum (40 per 100,000 persons). These four sites accounted for half of cancers diagnosed in 2011, including 209,292 prostate cancers, 220,097 female breast cancers, 207,339 lung and bronchus cancers, and 135,260 colon and rectum cancers. In 2011, the cervical cancer incidence rate was 7.5 per 100,000 women, representing 12,109 reported cancers.

By state in 2011, all-sites cancer incidence rates ranged from 374 to 509 per 100,000 persons. State site-specific cancer incidence rates ranged from 79 to 195 per 100,000 men for prostate cancer, 106 to 153 per 100,000 women for female breast cancer, 29 to 93 per 100,000 persons for lung cancer, 33 to 49 per 100,000 persons for colorectal cancer, and 4.5 to 13.7 per 100,000 women for cervical cancer. Healthy People 2020 targets were reached in 37 states for incidence of colorectal cancer and in 28 states for incidence of cervical cancer. Compared with the states and DC, cancer incidence rates in Puerto Rico in 2011 were lower for all-sites cancer (339 per 100,000 persons), lung cancer (17 per 100,000 persons), and breast cancer (93 per 100,000 women), but higher for prostate cancer (150 per 100,000 men), colorectal cancer (43 per 100,000 persons), and cervical cancer (13.5 per 100,000 women).

Among persons with cancer diagnosed during 2003–2010, the 5-year relative survival rate was 65%. This percentage was similar for males and females. The 5-year relative survival was highest among those diagnosed with cancer before age 45 years (81%) and decreased with increasing age. Among the most common cancer sites, 5-year relative survival was highest for prostate cancer (97%) and breast cancer (88%), intermediate for colorectal cancer (63%), and lowest for lung cancer (18%). The 5-year relative survival after any cancer diagnosis was lower for black persons (60%) than for white persons (65%) and for each cancer site.