According to the report, the number of cancer survivors living in the United States reached record levels in the AACR Cancer Progress Report 2020, with more than 16.9 million survivors.
Between 1991 and 2017, the number of cancer deaths in the U.S. dropped by 29%.
From August Gust 2019, U.S. The Food and Drug Administration has also approved record number treatments. Thirty-five were approved between August 31st and July 31st this year, with many treatments for cancer types with few or no alternatives.
D Ant. Anthony Ribas said he has personally seen this improvement in care in his oncology practice. Ten years ago, only one in five patients with metastatic melanoma would have benefited from the treatment. Today, half of her patients with this type of cancer benefit from existing treatments.
“Although we have made a lot of progress against cancer, we still need to do more,” Ribas said. Ribas is President of AACR and Professor of Medicine, Surgery and Molecular and Medical Pharmacology at the University of California Los Angeles Johnson Comprehensive Cancer Center. “For example, it is estimated that more than four out of 10 of adults aged 30 and over are diagnosed with cancer due to potential preventable causes such as smoking, obesity and alcohol.”
Epidemics have taken a toll
The Kovid-19 epidemic has had a negative impact on cancer care. About 80% of people in cancer treatment have experienced a slight delay in care due to the epidemic.
Looking at data from 190 hospitals in 23 states, the report also found that many tests for cervical, breast and colon cancer dropped by 85% or more after the first Covid-19 case was diagnosed in the U.S.
Delays in cancer screening and treatment are expected to lead to more than 10,000 additional deaths from breast and colorectal cancer in the next decade.
Obesity and aging increase the risk
According to Dr. Christopher Lina, a member of the AACR Steering Committee, about 20% of new cancers are the result of a combination of being overweight, dieting and being physically inactive. U.S. Department of Disease Control and Prevention According to the centers, the U.S. More than 40% of the population is obese, and it is expected that half of all Americans will become obese in the next decade.
“This rapid rise in obesity has led to a alarming increase in the incidence of some obesity-related cancers,” said Lee, an expert in identifying risk factors for breast cancer at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. “Public health is of paramount importance, with research into how to deal with the effects of obesity and cancer, with new strategies to reduce obesity and prevent this major epidemic.”
The population is also aging. Age is the biggest risk factor for the development of cancer, with about 60% of people over the age of 65 having cancer. That age group will more than double in those 40 years. In 2040, with a population of 80 million, the U.S. It is projected to drop from just 1.8 million cancer cases in 2020 to 2.3 million by 2040.
Children are still getting cancer
The report states that U.S. The five-year survival rate for children and adolescents with cancer in India increased from 63% in the mid-1970s to 85% in 2016, however, more research is needed, the report said.
In 2020, an estimated 413,000 children will develop cancer and 328,000 will die from it, the report found. Cancer is the second leading cause of death in children aged one to 14 years.
Black children are 50% more likely to die from cancer than white children, the report found.
Systemic racism is tied to cancer
There remains great racial disparity in cancer survival rates for children and adults.
The mortality rate for stomach cancer is twice as high in Hispanics as in non-Hispanics, for example.
Access to care and insurance coverage is also crucial. Liver cancer patients have no health insurance, they live only half as long as coverage liver cancer patients. Black women with ovarian cancer, on average, do not survive unless they have non-Hispanic white patients with the disease.
Medically underserved populations receive less education about cancer prevention and less access to cancer screening. The report also found inequalities in the timely delivery of life-saving treatment.
“There are many complex reasons for those differences, but most of these factors have a direct impact on the ongoing structural and systemic racism in our country,” Lee said. “To address them in a meaningful way, we need to keep seeing broad changes in institutional and government policies and practices.”
What can be done
The AACRA called for additional continued government funding for better access to cancer research and health care and screening.
Scientists also say that individuals can help themselves and reduce the risk of cancer. Regular checkups and timely screening can detect cancer when it is at the stage where treatment is most effective. Regular exercise can reduce nine different types of cancer, including many common cancers such as breast, bowel and lung cancer. Quitting or not starting smoking or vaping also reduces a person’s risk of cancer.
AACR’s Chief Executive Officer Dr. “By working together we will be in a better position to accelerate the pace of progress, and make major progress toward the prevention and treatment of all cancers as soon as possible,” said Margaret Fotti. “
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