Fewer expected to die of cancer

For the first time in thirty years experts predict the tide in the battle against cancer has finally begun to turn, and they project that fewer people will die from the debilitating disease.
Although the number of deaths caused by cancer has actually been ebbing since 1991 because death rates are calculated with regard to the size and age of the population, it wasn’t until 2003 that the decrease was significant enough to outpace the current living population and produce the good news.
“The drop in the actual number of cancer deaths in 2003 and in our own projections for 2006 means more people will survive cancer,” said Dr. Alfred R. Ashford, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society (AMC) of New York and New Jersey. “For the first time, the advances we’ve made in prevention, early detection, and treatment are translating into fewer cancer deaths, even as the elderly population grows.”
The AMC’s 2006 Cancer Facts & Figures, which published the projected decline based its findings on data compiled and analyzed by its leading team of epidemiologic researchers. Unfortunately, the AMC is unsure if deaths caused by cancer will continue to fall.
This year the AMC estimates that 1.4 million Americans will be diagnosed with cancer and 565,000 will die from the disease.