For decades, the rate of cancer incidence and deaths from the disease among African-Americans in the United States far outpaced that of whites. But the most recent analysis of national data by the American Cancer Society suggests that “cancer gap” is shrinking: In recent years, death rates from four major cancers have declined more among blacks than among whites.
The report was published online Thursday in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.
African-Americans still bear a disproportionate share of the cancer burden in the U.S., having the highest death rate and the lowest survival rate of any racial or ethnic group for most cancers.
Read this story now for free
To continue reading, sign up for our newsletter and get unlimited access to WABE.org
You can select your preferences for news and local content. We will never share your email address. Learn how your newsletter sign-up will support WABE and Public Media
