NPR - Cancer deaths are declining, but diagnoses are rising especially among younger women

January 16, 2025 4:20 PM ET
Yuki Noguchi

A study released Thursday points to a mixed and rapidly shifting picture in cancer trends. On the one hand, the American Cancer Society's annual survey found that mortality from the disease declined rapidly, by 34%, between 1991 and 2022. But at the same time, for reasons little understood, more young and middle aged women are getting the disease.

New techniques for detecting and treating many cancers has revolutionized survival rates over the past couple of decades. But those gains are threatened by the increasing threat from earlier onset cancers affecting those under age 65, who historically were not at high risk of developing the disease.

The American Cancer Society report projects more than 2 million new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in 2025 and more than 600,000 people will die.

The survey found women are seeing spikes. Overall, cancer incidence rates among women under age 50 were 82% higher than their male counterparts in 2021, up from 51% in 2002. Women aged 50-64 are also getting cancer at higher rates than men.

Breast cancer in particular has been rising faster among women under 50 — it's up by 1.4% a year since the mid 2000s, compared to a 0.7% annual rise among older women.

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