Since we are currently talking about cancer in class I thought that this article I read was fitting. It is saying that the rate of new cancer cases between 2001 and 2005 are slightly declining. Death rates from cancer have steadily been inching downwards in the U.S. because of earlier detection rates and better treatments, and preventing cancer is also on the rise. The rate of cancer among men has declined 1.8 percent between 2001 and 2005, and has also dropped in women by .5 percent in that time span. The improvement is thanks to better treatments to common forms of cancer such as prostate, colorectal, breast, and lung.
The dropping rates may be thanks in part to state wide smoking bans in many states. For example in California people are half as likely to die from lung cancer compared to people in Kentucky. I put the picture to show how many states currently have a statewide smoking ban. (Ban highlighted in red states).
Although some experts fear that the tough economic times may put a damper on these trends. For example colorectal cancer rates are down because colonoscopies were much more popular between 2001 and 2005 because people had the correct health care to cover the procedure. However if people can't afford the proper health care, they wont be getting the screenings. For example the NCI (National Cancer Institute) has had to cut its budget back by 175 million this year, mainly due to the tough economic times.
Each specific type of cancer has seen a drop in the past years. Lung cancer dropped by 1.8% a year, breast cancer dropped by 2.2% a year, colorectal cancer dropped by 2.8% a year, and lastly prostate cancer dropped by 4.4% a year. However there are some less common types that have seen an increase lately. These include Kidney cancer and melanoma which increased by 2% and 7.7% respectively.
This drop in general is good news though. Proper health care and prevention techniques are a big reason for it. The article states that preventing cancer all together is the ultimate goal that the NCI and the American Cancer Society are both working towards. Cancer is a serious health problem and hopefully someday we will be able to say that it is completely preventable.
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