ACS cancer statistics released

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Cancer the Top Killer for Those Under 85

2 hours, 25 minutes ago Health - AP

By MARILYNN MARCHIONE, AP Medical Writer

For decades, heart disease has been the nation's top killer. Now cancer

has taken its place for Americans 85 and younger.

The reason is that deaths from both diseases are falling, but heart

disease mortality has declined more.

" It's dropping fast enough that another disease is eclipsing it, " said

Dr. Walter Tsou, president of the American Public Health Association

(news - web sites).

Snip

_ An estimated 1,372,910 new cancer cases and 570,260 cancer deaths are

expected this year. Five-year survival rates have risen from 50 percent

in the 1970s to 74 percent today.

_ Lung cancer remains the biggest killer, projected to claim 163,510

lives this year.

_ Some 232,090 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, and it will

kill 30,350.

_ About 211,240 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and it will

kill 40,410.

The report also highlights cancers caused by germs - 1.5 million cases

or 26 percent of cancers in developing countries; and 360,000 cases or

7.3 percent of cancers in developed countries such as the United States.

These are mostly liver cancer, caused by the hepatitis B and C viruses;

cervical cancer, caused by human papillomavirus; stomach cancer, caused

by H. pylori bacteria; and AIDS (news - web sites)-related cancers,

caused by infection with HIV (news - web sites).

http://tinyurl.com/4jsu8

For the ACS statistics:

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/STT/stt_0.asp

Kathy Meade

http://www.vapcacoalition.org/

Arlington Educational Consulting

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Statistician: A man who believes figures don't lie, but admits that

under analysis some of them won't stand up either.

Evan Esar (1899 - 1995), Esar's Comic Dictionary