Spotlight on: Cancer
Cancer is the second
leading cause of death in the United States, accounting for an estimated
536,860 deaths in 1994. Only accidental deaths account for more years of
potential life lost than cancer. Trends in cancer mortality have remained
essentially flat for most of the second part of this century. In 1950 the
age-adjusted death rate from cancer in the U.S. was 125 deaths per 100,000
population; by 1993 the cancer mortality rate was 133 deaths per 100,000.
. . . Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S.,
followed by colorectal cancer. Among men, prostate cancer is the second
leading cause of cancer death, followed by colorectal cancer and
pancreatic cancer. Among women, breast cancer is the second leading cause
of cancer death, followed by colorectal cancer and pancreatic cancer.
Breast cancer mortality rates for women have dropped in the past several
years, from 23.3 deaths per 100,000 women in 1985 to 21.5 deaths per
100,000 women in 1993.
Hospitalizations
In 1993 there were nearly 1.5 million hospital discharges for inpatients
with a first-listed diagnosis of cancer. An estimated 194,000 of these
hospitalizations were due to cancer of the trachea, bronchus, and lung;
168,000 were attributed to breast cancer; 111,000 from colon cancer; and
123,000 from prostate cancer. . . . Cancer patients spent an average of
8.1 days in the hospital in 1993, compared with 12 days in 1980. . . . The
average length of stay in 1993 for cancer of the large intestine was 11
days, while for breast cancer patients the average length of stay was 3.7.
. . . In 1993 there were 124,000 mastectomies performed in the U.S., while
317,000 prostatectomies were performed on U.S. men.
Screening procedures
There were 22.2 million pap smears and 3.3 million manual breast
examinations performed at physicians offices in 1994, as well as over 2.4
million skin biopsies. . . . In 1993, 60 percent of women aged 40 years
and over reported having a mammogram in the past 2 years, while 47 percent
of women 50-64 years of age reported having a mammogram within the past
year. . . . The percent of women between ages 50 and 64 who reported a
recent mammogram was lowest for uninsured women (20 percent) and highest
for women enrolled in an HMO (59 percent). . . . Among women over age 65
with both Medicare and private coverage, those enrolled in HMOs were 31
percent more likely to report recent mammography than women with
fee-for-service coverage. . . . Women aged 65 years and over with Medicare
coverage alone were 36 percent less likely to report recent mammography
than women with both Medicare and private fee-for-service coverage. . . .
Other procedures
There were 301,000 bronchoscopies performed in the U.S. in 1993, with or
without biopsies. Out of these, 125,000 were closed (endoscopic) biopsies
of the bronchus; 66,000 were closed endoscopic biopsies of the lung. . . .
There were 23,000 closed percutaneous (needle) biopsies performed on the
lung in 1993 and 16,000 open biopsies performed on the lung. . . . Among
hospital inpatients, therapeutic radiology and nuclear medicine was used
on 122,000 occasions in 1993, while chemotherapy was used in 388,000
instances.
For further
information about "Monitoring Health Care in America" please
contact NCHS, Office of Public Affairs
(301)-436-7551 or via e-mail at paoquery@cdc.gov.
Monthly Vital
Statistics Report
Annual Summary of Births, Marriages, Divorces, and Deaths: United States,
1994. Vol.
43 No. 13. 42 pp. (PHS) 95-1120 View/download PDF523
KB
Vol. 43, No. 7,
Supplement. Advance Report of Final Mortality Statistics, 1993.
Vital and Health
Statistics Series Report No.
122. Detailed Diagnoses and Procedures, National Hospital
Discharge Survey, 1993. 288 pp. (PHS) 95-1783. GPO stock number
017-022-01323-1 price $24.00 View/download PDF1.6
MB
No.
121. National Hospital Discharge Survey: Annual Summary, 1993. 63
pp. (PHS) 95-1782. GPO stock number 017-022-01317-7 price $5.00 View/download PDF489
KB
Advance Data from
Vital and Health Statistics
No. 273. National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey: 1994 Summary. 20
pp. (PHS) 96-1250 View/download PDF300
KB
No.
264. 1993 Summary: National Hospital Discharge Survey. 12 pp.
(PHS) 95-1250 View/download PDF108 KB