Americans learned yesterday that cancer has surpassed heart disease as the leading killer of Americans under age eighty-five. So says Cancer Facts & Figures 2005 by the American Cancer Society. While this may at first seem to be a scary indication that the rate of death from cancer has been rising significantly (as many of today's headlines proclaiming cancer the new "leading killer" imply), the truth about recent trends should actually cause more comfort than alarm.
The rate of cancer death in Americans under eighty-five has actually declined in recent years, due to improved prevention, detection, and treatment of cancer. However, the rate of heart disease deaths has decreased even more so, mostly due to lower smoking rates. Because of the greater decline in rates of heart disease deaths, cancer now has the dubious distinction of being America's "top killer."
Obviously, while the declines in death rates from both cancer and heart disease are good news, the still-high death rates are hardly cause for celebration. Since both diseases have many modifiable risk factors, we should not let the trends cause complacency. Lung cancer, approximately 90% of which is due to smoking, continues to be the top cause of cancer death. The American Cancer Society's report estimates that about a third of America's cancer deaths in 2005 will be due to tobacco use and another third will be related to nutrition, overweight, obesity, and physical inactivity. Modifying these cancer risk factors can also greatly reduce the risk of heart disease. Therefore, while the current trends among those under age eighty-five are positive, they reinforce the value of addressing these main risk factors in order to further reduce the prevalence of Americans' two top causes of death.
Rivka Weiser is a research intern at the American Council on Science and Health.
Resources on smoking:
Kicking Butts in the 21st Century: What Modern Science Has Learned About Smoking Cessation
TheScooponSmoking.org
Cigarettes: What the Warning Label Doesn't Tell You
Resources on nutrition and physical activity:
Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2005
The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports
