Cancer Declines Overall,
But Some Types Increase

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Over much of the 1990s, deaths from cancer declined slightly in the US, but the number of Americans diagnosed with certain cancers--including breast, skin and liver cancer--inched up, according to the federal government's annual report on cancer trends.

Overall, both cancer deaths and diagnoses declined slightly each year between 1992 and 1998, researchers report in the June 6th issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Women, however, did not see a decline in new cancer cases--largely because more older women were diagnosed with breast cancer. This trend may reflect higher rates of early detection of the disease, according to researchers led by Dr. Holly L. Howe of the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries in Springfield, Illinois.

Other cancers with less-than-encouraging numbers included cancer of the liver and its bile duct, which rose in incidence among black and white men and women. It also caused a growing number of cancer deaths each year. Liver tumors are, however, relatively rare in the US. According to Howe's team, the increase in this disease may be attributed to growing rates of hepatitis B and C, two liver infections that can lead to cancer.

New cases of the skin cancer melanoma also rose during the 1990s, part of which may be explained by earlier detection, the report indicates. Some other relatively rare cancers showed upswings in new cases and deaths, including thyroid cancer, cancer of the small intestine and acute myeloid leukemia.

On the other hand, the four major cancer killers in the US--breast, lung, prostate and colorectal cancers--showed mostly positive trends. Except for breast cancer, which showed slight yearly increases, new cases of these cancers dipped over the study period. Deaths attributable to these cancers also declined, except for lung cancer among women--although this increasing trend is slowing, Howe's team notes.

Indeed, the authors point out, except for lung and breast cancer, the cancers that appeared to pick up some steam during the 1990s are all fairly uncommon, and together account for about 13% of all US cancer diagnoses and deaths.

Still, they stress, in order to keep positive trends going and to reverse negative ones, measures must be taken to help all Americans prevent cancer, get screened for cancers that can be caught be early, and get the best treatment possible after a diagnosis.

SOURCE: Journal of the National Cancer Institute 2001;93:824-842.

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