The American Cancer Society (ACS) released Cancer Statistics, 2023, the organization’s annual report on cancer facts and trends. According to the report, overall cancer mortality has dropped 33% since 1991, averting an estimated 3.8 million cancer deaths.
Based on ACS data, in 2023 there are projected to be 1,958,310 new cancer cases and 609,820 cancer deaths in the United States. These major findings were published today in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, alongside its consumer-friendly companion, Cancer Facts & Figures 2023, available on cancer.org.
Two of the most critical findings are driven by substantial changes in cancer prevention and screening in the last decade. First, there was an astounding 65% reduction in cervical cancer rates in women ages 20-24 from 2012 through 2019, in the wake of the introduction of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.
By contrast, prostate cancer, which is the second leading cause of cancer death for men in the U.S., increased by 3% per year from 2014 through 2019 after two decades of decline. Most concerning is that this increase was driven by the diagnosis of advanced disease. Since 2011, the diagnosis of advanced-stage (regional- or distant-stage) prostate cancer has increased by 4% to 5% annually and the proportion of men diagnosed with distant-stage disease has doubled. These findings underscore the importance of understanding and reducing this trend.
To address the alarming trends in prostate cancer, ACS is launching IMPACT, an initiative geared toward Improving Mortality from Prostate Cancer Together.
