Cancer Trends in the United States
Three of my immediate family
members have been diagnosed with three of the most prevalent forms of skin
cancer in the United States. My mom, dad, and brother have been diagnosed with
breast cancer, malignant melanoma, and basal cell carcinoma, respectively.
Since my life has been directly impacted by cancer, I wanted to research cancer
trends across the U.S. for my community trends assignment. In order to gain more
information, I called the National Cancer Information Center and spoke to Chris
Smith, one of the Cancer Information Specialists employed there. Chris gave me
a lot of useful information about the current cancer trends and the five most
common types of cancer in the Unites States. The three most prevalent cancers
for both sexes in order of occurrences are skin cancer, lung cancer, and
colorectal cancer, with prostate cancer and breast cancer as the most common
cancers for only men and women respectively.
Skin Cancer
Skin
cancer, the most common form of cancer across the United States, comes in three
forms. The most common form is basal cell carcinoma, followed by squamous cell
carcinoma and then the most lethal, melanoma. It is so common, in fact, that
most organizations don’t even keep an exact count on the number of occurrences
they see each year. In the last year, however, there were at least 3.5 million
people diagnosed with carcinomas, and the number is expected to rise. A trend
has also been observed in an increase in carcinomas among women, and although
no solid evidence has been researched, it is thought to be due to an increase
in sun exposure and the use of UV lamp tanning beds. Unlike most other forms of
cancer, skin cancer is common among all age groups, though depending on a
person’s race, gender, and age, their chances of contracting a carcinoma or
melanoma may be increased.
Lung Cancer
As the second most common type of
cancer in the U.S., lung cancer is preventable in about 87% of cases. Tobacco
use is the number one preventable cause of death in the United States, and has actually
been on a steady decline since 1964 when the surgeon general first spoke
against tobacco. The trends among the different age groups have been
fluctuating, but the overall use of cigarettes has decreased in recent years. However,
44 million American adults are still smoking today, which helps account for the
number of cases reported each year. In 2013, it is predicted that there will be
around 230,000 new cases of lung cancer, and over 150,000 deaths. The
demographic is generally predominantly male, and is more common in those who
smoke over nine cigarettes a day.
Colorectal Cancer
Colorectal
cancer is the third most common cancer among both genders in the United States.
It is estimated that about one in every twenty adults will develop colorectal
cancer at some point in their lives, although certain factors can increase a
person’s propensity for contracting the disease. A few of these are lifestyle,
weight, regular exercise (or lack of), family history of colorectal cancer,
heave alcohol use, diets high in red meat, and those with irritable bowel
disorder. In 2013, it is expected that over 100,000 new cases of colorectal
cancer will be reported, with more men being diagnosed than women. The odds are
that 9 out of 10 people diagnosed will be over the age of fifty, since incidences
increase with age. Early detection and regular screenings have helped lower the
number of deaths in recent years, and are ideal ways to prevent fatalities due
to colorectal cancer.
Prostate Cancer
The number
one most common form of cancer in American men is prostate cancer. Last year
about 230,000 men were diagnosed, and around 30,000 died as a result of the
disease. About 1 out of every 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, and
of those men, two thirds will be men age 65 or older. Prostate cancer is the second
leading cause of death in American men, following lung cancer. However, there
are 2.5 current prostate cancer survivors in the United States as of the new
year. This high number is largely due to advances in surgery and treatment
options, as well as implementing the wait and see technique more often instead
of simply jumping straight into surgery.
Breast Cancer
The
most common type of cancer among women in the United States is breast cancer.
Around 1 in every eight women will likely develop this specific type of cancer
in their lives. It is estimated that there will be around 230,000 new cases in
the year 2013 alone. The incidence rate has, however, decreased in recent
years, dropping 7% from 2002 to 2003 alone. This is probably linked to the
initiative to reduce hormone treatments in post-menopausal women, since this
increases their risk of developing cancer. Deaths due to breast cancer have
also been reduced to about 1 in 36 cases due to early detection, increased
awareness, regular screenings, and improved treatments. Today, there are about
3 million breast cancer survivors in the United States.
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