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News & Press

Report: Decline in Melanoma Deaths Leads an Overall Drop in Cancer Mortality

July 9 – A rapid decline in deaths from lung cancer and melanoma led an overall drop in cancer mortality in men and women across all racial and ethnic groups in the United States, according to the Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Melanoma mortality rates have continued to decline in recent years thanks to new advances in treatment and greater awareness about the prevention and early detection of melanoma, creating a substantial increase in metastatic melanoma survival.

The report, however, did note that overall cancer incidence rates have increased in females, children, adolescents and young adults (AYA). Additionally, in major cancers including prostate, colorectal and female breast cancer, previously declining death rates slowed or disappeared entirely.

“The fact that more people are surviving metastatic melanoma is encouraging news for our community,” said Kyleigh LiPira, MRF CEO. “However, a continued increase in incidence rates means that we must strengthen our efforts to improve education and awareness of a highly preventable disease, while continuing to fund life-saving research to develop more effective treatments.”

Recent advances like immunotherapy that were first applied in melanoma are now used to successfully treat multiple forms of cancer. Continued progress in melanoma science will not only help the more than 1.3 million Americans currently living with melanoma, but could potentially lead to new, more effective treatments for other cancers.

The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer is a collaboration of the American Cancer Society (ACS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Cancer Institutes (NCI) and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACCR). Additional findings from the report can be found in this CDC press release, and the full report is available to read here.

Continued advances in melanoma science improve outcomes in the cancer community, and these are made possible by your support. Please show your support with a tax-deductible gift today.

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