United States Cancer Statistics (USCS)

Major Facts & Findings

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Facts

• The U.S. Cancer Statistics: 2004 Incidence and Mortality report marks the sixth time that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) National Program of Cancer Registries (NPCR) and the National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program have combined their cancer incidence data sources to produce a new set of official federal statistics on cancer incidence (newly diagnosed cases) for a single year for each registry that met data quality criteria. Mortality statistics from CDC's National Vital Statistics System have also been included on cancer deaths for a single year and each state. The report has been produced in collaboration with the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACCR).*
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• The U.S. Cancer Statistics: 2004 Incidence and Mortality report provides state-specific and regional data for cancer cases diagnosed and for cancer deaths that occurred in 2004, the most recent year for which incidence data are available.



• This year's publication includes cancer incidence data obtained from registries covering 98% of the U.S. population. Mortality data from all states and the District of Columbia were also included and cover 100% of the U.S. population. The Web-based report contains the combined data for the years 2002–2004 for all tables and graphs. Also, tables of age-specific incidence and death rates for 27 cancer sites are available.

Major Findings

This report indicates the following major findings for invasive cancer incidence and cancer mortality in the United States for 2004. Age-adjusted rates are presented in parentheses where appropriate and are per 100,000 persons. Hispanic origin is not mutually exclusive from race categories (white, black, Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native).

Cancer Among Men*

Most commonly diagnosed cancers among men:

• Prostate cancer (145.3)
• First among men of all races and Hispanic origin.


• Lung cancer (85.3)
• Second among white (84.4), black (104.5), Asian/Pacific Islander (49.7), and American Indian/Alaska Native (51.1) men.
• Third among Hispanic men (48.5).


• Colorectal cancer (58.2)
• Second among Hispanic men (50.3).
• Third among white (57.0), black (67.6), Asian/Pacific Islander (42.0), and American Indian/Alaska Native (32.6) men.

Leading causes of cancer death among men:

• Lung cancer (70.3)
• First among men of all racial and Hispanic origin.


• Prostate cancer (25.4)
• Second among white (23.4), black (56.1), American Indian/Alaska Native (16.5), and Hispanic (19.3) men.


• Colorectal cancer (21.6)
• Third among men of all races and Hispanic origin.


• Liver cancer
• Second among Asian/Pacific Islander men (15.1).

Cancer Among Women*

Most commonly diagnosed cancers among women:

• Breast cancer (117.7)
• First among women of all races and Hispanic origin.


• Lung cancer (54.2)
• Second among white (55.5) and American Indian/Alaska Native (35.3) women.
• Third among black (50.4), Asian/Pacific Islander (26.9), and Hispanic (26.7) women.


• Colorectal cancer (42.7)
• Second among black (50.6), Asian/Pacific Islander (32.1), and Hispanic (34.2) women.
• Third among white (41.6) and American Indian/Alaska Native women (28.7).

Leading causes of cancer death among women:

• Lung cancer (40.9)
• First among white (41.9), black (40.0), Asian/Pacific Islander (18.1), and American Indian/Alaska Native (30.2) women.
• Second among Hispanic women (14.4).


• Breast cancer (24.4)
• First among Hispanic women (15.7).
• Second among white (23.8), black (32.3), Asian/Pacific Islander (12.6), and American Indian/Alaska Native (15.0) women.


• Colorectal cancer (15.2)
• Third among women of all races and Hispanic origin.

Cancer among Children

The most commonly diagnosed cancers and leading causes of cancer death in children aged 0–19 years:

• Leukemias
• Highest incidence rate (8.7) found among children aged 1–4 years.
• Highest death rate (1.0) found among children aged 15–19 years.


• Brain and central nervous system cancer
• Highest incidence rate (4.1) found among children aged 1–4 years.
• Highest death rate (0.9) found among children aged 5–9 years.

Benign and Borderline (Nonmalignant) Brain and Other Nervous System Tumors†

• The incidence rate among boys aged 0–19 years is 1.3; the incidence rate among girls aged 0–19 years is 1.6.



• The incidence rate among men aged 20 years and older is 10.9; the incidence rate among women aged 20 years and older is 16.5.



• Among men aged 20 years or older, the most common nonmalignant brain tumor is meningioma (4.5), followed by tumors of the pituitary (2.7).



• Among women aged 20 years and older, the most common nonmalignant brain tumor is meningioma (10.3), followed by tumors of the pituitary (2.7).

Racial or Ethnic Variations‡

All cancers combined, men:

• Incidence rates are highest among black (607.3), followed by white (527.2), Hispanic (415.5), Asian/Pacific Islander (325.8), and American Indian/Alaska Native (288.6) men.



• Death rates are highest among black (303.5), followed by white (224.8), Hispanic (152.8), American Indian/Alaska Native (151.2), and Asian/Pacific Islander (137.0) men.

All cancers combined, women:

• Incidence rates are highest among white (405.9), followed by black (379.7), Hispanic (318.6), Asian/Pacific Islander (267.4), and American Indian/Alaska Native (242.2) women.



• Death rates are highest among black (182.8), followed by white (156.4), American Indian/Alaska Native (110.7), Hispanic (101.9), and Asian/Pacific Islander (92.3) women.

Among four races and Hispanic origin:

• American Indian/Alaska Native men have the lowest incidence rates of cancer; however, Asian/Pacific Islander men have the lowest death rates from cancer.



• White women have the highest incidence rates of cancer; however, black women have the highest death rates from cancer.



• American Indian/Alaska Native women have the lowest incidence rates of cancer and the third-highest cancer death rates.

Geographic Variations§

Female breast cancer:

• The incidence rate for the United States is 117.7.
• Incidence rates are highest in the Northeast U.S. Census region (125.9), followed by the Midwest (117.7), West (117.4), and South (113.2).
• Registry incidence rates range from 102.9 to 135.8.


• The death rate for the United States is 24.4.
• Death rates are highest in the Northeast U.S. Census region (25.1), followed by the Midwest and South (both 24.6) and the West (22.9).
• State death rates range from 15.6 to 27.6.

Prostate cancer:

• The incidence rate for the United States is 145.3.
• Incidence rates are highest in the Northeast U.S. Census region (151.6), followed by the West (148.9), Midwest (147.9), and South (138.1).
• Registry incidence rates range from 109.7 to 196.6.


• The death rate for the United States is 25.4.
• Death rates are highest in the South U.S. Census region (26.4), followed by the Midwest (26.0), Northeast (24.4), and West (24.3).
• State death rates range from 18.9 to 44.8.

Lung cancer:

• Men
• The incidence rate for the United States is 85.3.
• Incidence rates are highest in the South U.S. Census region (97.9), followed by the Midwest (88.6), Northeast (81.0), and West (66.0).
• Registry incidence rates range from 37.5 to 133.2.


• The death rate for the United States is 70.3.
• Death rates are highest in the South U.S. Census region (80.1), followed by the Midwest (75.2), Northeast (64.3), and West (54.2).
• State death rates range from 35.6 to 106.0.


• Women
• The incidence rate for the United States is 54.2.
• Incidence rates are highest in the South U.S. Census region (56.4), followed by the Midwest (55.7), Northeast (55.3), and West (48.1).
• Registry incidence rates range from 20.6 to 75.5.


• The death rate for the United States is 40.9.
• Death rates are highest in the South U.S. Census region (42.8), followed by the Midwest (42.7), Northeast (39.9), and West (36.5).
• State death rates range from 18.5 to 57.0.

Colorectal cancer:

• Men
• The incidence rate for the United States is 58.2.
• Incidence rates are highest in the Northeast U.S. Census region (61.7), followed by the Midwest (60.8), South (58.9), and West (51.0).
• Registry incidence rates range from 45.7 to 69.4.


• The death rate for the United States is 21.6.
• Death rates are highest in the Midwest U.S. Census region (22.7), followed by the South (22.1), Northeast (21.9), and West (19.2).
• State death rates range from 15.0 to 27.3.


• Women
• The incidence rate for the United States is 42.7.
• Incidence rates are highest in the Northeast U.S. Census region (46.2), followed by the Midwest (44.0), South (42.5), and West (38.2).
• Registry incidence rates range from 29.0 to 50.6.


• The death rate for the United States is 15.2.
• Death rates are highest in the Northeast and Midwest U.S. Census regions (both 15.8), followed by the South (15.3) and West (13.5).
• State death rates range from 9.4 to 18.5.

* The combined rate for all races is presented when the ranking of cancer sites did not differ across race and ethnicity; race- or ethnicity-specific rates are presented when ranking differed by race or ethnicity.

† The data included cover approximately 97% of the U.S. population.

‡ Race- or ethnicity-specific rates are presented for all cancer sites combined.

§ Geographic variations are presented for the four most common cancers.

** Links to non-Federal organizations found at this site are provided solely as a service to our users. These links do not constitute an endorsement of these organizations or their programs by CDC or the Federal Government, and none should be inferred. CDC is not responsible for the content of the individual organization Web pages found at these links.