Cancer Deaths Expected To Fall in 2004
2/1/2004 By Sid Kirchheimer , Reviewed By Michael Smith, MD WebMD Medical News (see below) But More Work Is Needed as 1,500 Americans Will Die Each Day. Although more people are being diagnosed, death rates for most major cancers continue to fall, the American Cancer Society says. Since 1930, overall cancer deaths have declined 11% among men and 14% among women. The biggest decrease has been in stomach cancers, which have dropped 86% in men and 91% in women -- largely because of improved hygiene and food storage and a lower rate of infection of the H pylori bacteria among Americans. "Cancer is not an inescapable fact of life," says Michael J. Thun, MD, an author of the report. "There are things that we do, in our culture and with social policies and practices, that make a difference in cancer occurrence." While news is good regarding deaths from cancer, there is still much work to do. The ACS estimates that cancer will kill more than 1,500 Americans each day this year -- more than 560,000 in all -- and account for one of every four deaths in the U.S. Cancer will continue to be the No. 2 killer behind heart disease. About one-third of these deaths will result from lifestyle factors such as poor diet, obesity or lack of exercise, while smoking will claim about 180,000 lives. In its new report, Cancer Facts & Figures 2004, the American Cancer Society projects that some 1.4 million Americans will be diagnosed with [...]