Mortality

Background

The rate of death from cancer in the United States continues to decline among both men and women, among all major racial and ethnic groups, and for the most common types of cancer, including lung, colorectal, breast, and prostate cancers. The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer shows that the death rate from all cancers combined is continuing the decline that began in the early 1990s.

Still, in 2023 cancers of the female breast, prostate, lung, colorectal, and pancreas accounted for over one-half (51 percent) of all cancer deaths in the United States. Lung cancer alone claimed 21 percent of lives lost to cancer.

Measure

The number of cancer deaths per 100,000 people per year, age-adjusted to a U.S. 2000 standard population.

Data Source

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, 1975–2023.

Healthy People 2030 Target

Reduce the overall cancer death rate to 122.7 cancer deaths per 100,000 people per year.

Top 4 Cancer Sites

Reduce the colorectal cancer death rate to 8.9 deaths per 100,000 people per year.
Reduce the lung cancer death rate to 25.1 deaths per 100,000 people per year.
Reduce the female breast cancer death rate to 15.3 deaths per 100,000 females per year.
Reduce the prostate cancer death rate to 16.9 deaths per 100,000 males per year.

Healthy People 2030 is a set of goals set forth by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Note: Goals are indicated as blue line on Detailed Trend Graphs.

Trends and Most Recent Estimates

All Cancer Sites Combined

By Sex

U.S. death rates for all cancers by sex, 1975-2023
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Most Recent Estimates (2023)
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Rate per 100,000	95% Confidence Interval
	Both Sexes	141.8	141.4 - 142.1
	Male	165.3	164.7 - 165.9
	Female	124.1	123.6 - 124.6

By Race/Ethnicity

U.S. death rates for all cancers by race/ethnicity, 2000-2023
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Most Recent Estimates (2023)
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Rate per 100,000	95% Confidence Interval
	All Races	141.8	141.4 - 142.1
	Non-Hispanic White	148.6	148.2 - 149.1
	Non-Hispanic Black	159.3	158.1 - 160.5
	Hispanic	102.6	101.6 - 103.5
	Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander	89.5	88.3 - 90.7
	Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native	152.4	146.6 - 158.4

Top 4 Cancer Sites

Comparison of Top Cancer Sites

U.S. death rates for the most common cancers, 1975-2023
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Most Recent Estimates (2023)
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Rate per 100,000	95% Confidence Interval
	Colon and Rectum	12.7	12.6 - 12.9
	Lung and Bronchus	29.5	29.3 - 29.6
	Female Breast	18.6	18.5 - 18.8
	Prostate	18.5	18.3 - 18.7

Colon and Rectum Cancer by Sex

U.S. death rates for colon and rectum cancer by sex, 1975-2023
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Most Recent Estimates (2023)
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Rate per 100,000	95% Confidence Interval
	Both Sexes	12.7	12.6 - 12.9
	Male	15.1	14.9 - 15.3
	Female	10.7	10.6 - 10.8

Colon and Rectum Cancer by Race/Ethnicity

U.S. death rates for colon and rectum cancer by race/ethnicity, 2000-2023
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Most Recent Estimates (2023)
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Rate per 100,000	95% Confidence Interval
	All Races	12.7	12.6 - 12.9
	Non-Hispanic White	13.0	12.8 - 13.1
	Non-Hispanic Black	16.0	15.6 - 16.4
	Hispanic	10.4	10.1 - 10.7
	Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander	8.7	8.4 - 9.1
	Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native	18.3	16.3 - 20.4

Lung and Bronchus Cancer by Sex

U.S. death rates for lung and bronchus cancer by sex, 1975-2023
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Most Recent Estimates (2023)
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Rate per 100,000	95% Confidence Interval
	Both Sexes	29.5	29.3 - 29.6
	Male	34.1	33.8 - 34.3
	Female	25.8	25.6 - 26.0

Lung and Bronchus Cancer by Race/Ethnicity

U.S. death rates for lung and bronchus cancer by race/ethnicity, 2000-2023
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Most Recent Estimates (2023)
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Rate per 100,000	95% Confidence Interval
	All Races	29.5	29.3 - 29.6
	Non-Hispanic White	32.6	32.4 - 32.8
	Non-Hispanic Black	30.5	30.0 - 31.1
	Hispanic	13.1	12.7 - 13.4
	Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander	17.7	17.2 - 18.3
	Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native	30.8	28.2 - 33.5

Female Breast Cancer by Race/Ethnicity

U.S. death rates for female breast cancer by race/ethnicity, 2000-2023
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Most Recent Estimates (2023)
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Rate per 100,000	95% Confidence Interval
	All Races	18.6	18.5 - 18.8
	Non-Hispanic White	18.8	18.6 - 19.0
	Non-Hispanic Black	25.8	25.2 - 26.5
	Hispanic	13.4	13.0 - 13.9
	Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander	11.7	11.1 - 12.3
	Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native	17.4	14.8 - 20.4

Prostate Cancer by Race/Ethnicity

U.S. death rates for prostate cancer by race/ethnicity, 2000-2023
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Most Recent Estimates (2023)
Overview Graph	Detailed Trend Graphs	Rate per 100,000	95% Confidence Interval
	All Races	18.5	18.3 - 18.7
	Non-Hispanic White	17.8	17.5 - 18.0
	Non-Hispanic Black	35.1	34.1 - 36.1
	Hispanic	14.8	14.2 - 15.4
	Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander	8.1	7.5 - 8.6
	Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native	17.9	14.7 - 21.5

Recent Trends for Common Cancer Sites

2019-2023 trends (Average Annual Percent Change) in U.S. death rates for common cancer sites
Overview graph	Cancer Site	Average Annual Percent Change
	All Sites	-1.5*
	Brain and ONS	-0.3
	Cervix Uteri	-0.7*
	Colon and Rectum	-0.8*
	Corpus Uteri and NOS	1.6*
	Esophagus	-1.1*
	Female Breast	-1.5*
	Hodgkin Lymphoma	-0.3
	Kidney and Renal Pelvis	-1.4*
	Larynx	-0.8*
	Leukemia	-1.8*
	Liver and IBD	-0.3
	Lung and Bronchus	-3.6*
	Melanoma of the Skin	-1.2*
	Myeloma	-3.7*
	Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma	-2.5*
	Oral Cavity and Pharynx	0.8*
	Ovary	-2.8*
	Pancreas	0.2
	Prostate	-0.6*
	Stomach	-2.1*
	Testis	4.6*
	Thyroid	0.0
	Urinary Bladder	-1.3*
* The Average Annual Percent Change (AAPC) is statistically significant.

Additional Information

General Public Resources

Advanced Cancer. National Cancer Institute.
End-of-Life Care for People Who Have Cancer. National Cancer Institute.
Hospice Care. National Cancer Institute.
Advance Directives. American Cancer Society.
Hospice Care. American Cancer Society.
Nearing the End of Life. American Cancer Society.

Public Health Resources

Planning the Transition to End-of-Life Care in Advanced Care (PDQ^®)-Health Professional Version. National Cancer Institute.
Resources for Health Professionals. National Cancer Institute.

Scientific reports

Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer. National Cancer Institute.

Statistics

SEER*Explorer: An interactive website that provides easy access to a wide range of SEER cancer statistics. National Cancer Institute.
State Cancer Profiles. National Cancer Institute.
Cancer Facts and Figures. American Cancer Society.
Colorectal Cancer Mortality Projection. Cancer Intervention Surveillance Network.
National Vital Statistics System—Mortality Data. . Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Year Range

1975-2023

Recent Summary Trend Year Range

2019-2023

Recent Summary Trend

Falling

Desired Direction