American Cancer Society: 2020 Saw Drop in Cancer Deaths
The American Cancer Society's "Facts & Figures 2021" reports another record-breaking one-year drop in cancer deaths.
The death rate from cancer in the United States has continued to decline. From 1991 to 2018, the cancer death rate has fallen 31%. This includes a 2.4% decline from 2017 to 2018—a new record for the largest 1-year drop in the cancer death rate. These are just some of the findings from the annual statistics reported from the American Cancer Society (ACS).
The report estimates that in the US in 2021, almost 1.9 million new cancer cases will be diagnosed. And more than 600,000 people will die from cancer.
This most recent cancer data is 2 to 4 years behind the current year because of the time it takes to collect data, interpret it, ensure its quality, and share it. ACS researchers used data about new diagnoses of cancer through 2017 and about deaths from cancer through 2018. As a result, these reported numbers do not account for the effect the COVID-19 pandemic has likely had on cancer diagnoses and deaths. More details about COVID-19 and its impact on cancer is available in the Facts & Figures report’s Special Section: COVID-19 and Cancer.