What Is Cancer? — National Overview · The Force for Health®

📏 Reading the Numbers · Dr. Rob explains

"Cancer rates" — incidence vs. mortality vs. survival

When most sources (CDC, ACS, NCI) say "rates" they mean incidence — new diagnoses per 100,000 people per year. That's NOT the same as deaths. A high-incidence cancer can be highly survivable; a lower-incidence cancer can be much deadlier. Always check which number is being shown.

📊 Incidence

New diagnoses per 100K per year. The default "cancer rate."

⚰️ Mortality

Deaths per 100K per year. Different from incidence.

💪 5-Yr Survival

% still alive 5 years after diagnosis. The hope number.

🌐 Prevalence

Total alive with that cancer right now. ~18M in US today.

📍 On this page: numbers are INCIDENCE (new cases/yr) unless the column or label explicitly says "deaths" or "mortality." Survival rates are 5-year relative survival.

🧬 What Cancer Actually Is Dr. Rob + Sources Dr. Rob on Cell BiologyWhy cancer is fundamentally a genetic disease
Cancer starts at the DNA level. Three categories of genes go wrong: oncogenes (promote growth — when broken, they're stuck "on"), tumor-suppressor genes (apply brakes — when damaged, no brakes), and DNA-repair genes (fix copy errors — when broken, errors accumulate exponentially).
Most adult cancers need 5-7 different gene mutations to fully form. That's why cancer takes years to develop — and why prevention works: every year you avoid carcinogens is a year of mutations you don't accumulate.
📊 Data sources NCI — Cancer Biology Hallmarks of Cancer (Hanahan & Weinberg) NIH — How Cancer Starts

Cancer is a disease of cellular control failure. Every cell in the body follows a set of rules: when to grow, when to divide, when to repair, when to die. Cancer happens when those rules break. Damaged DNA accumulates, normal control systems fail, and cells start growing where they shouldn't, dividing when they shouldn't, and surviving long past when they should have died.

The result is a tumor (a mass of abnormal cells) that can stay local (benign), invade nearby tissue (malignant), or spread through blood or lymph to distant organs (metastatic). Cancer is named by where it starts — breast cancer that spreads to bone is still breast cancer, not bone cancer. There is no single disease called "cancer." There are more than 200 distinct types, each with its own biology, risk factors, screening tests, and treatments.

🔬 The Cell-Level Story

Mutations in genes that control growth (oncogenes), repair (tumor suppressors), and death (apoptosis) accumulate over time.

⏱️ It Takes Years

Most adult cancers develop over 10-20+ years before becoming detectable. This is why prevention + early screening work.

🌳 Risk ≠ Cause

A risk factor raises the odds, but doesn't guarantee cancer. Most people with risk factors never develop cancer; some with no risk factors do.

💪 ~40% Preventable

The American Cancer Society estimates ~40% of cancer cases and ~50% of cancer deaths in the US are linked to modifiable risks (smoking, weight, alcohol, sun, infection, screening).

The FFH Cancer Dashboard Family

Where to Drill Down · by Cancer Type Dr. Rob Dr. Rob on the FamilyHow to navigate
Each FFH Cancer Dashboard surfaces national + state + county data, screening guidance, and the prevention plays that move the needle for that specific cancer. Live dashboards have full data + Reality Health Games tied in. Upcoming dashboards will follow the same template — usually 4-6 weeks build per cancer.
If you don't see your cancer dashboard yet, use the 26-cancers grid below for the data, then come back when the full dashboard launches. Want to sponsor a specific cancer dashboard build? Reach out to Coach Lucy.

FFH builds cancer-specific dashboards on a rolling schedule. Each dashboard covers incidence, mortality, screening, survival, prevention plays, and Reality Health Games tied to that cancer. Live dashboards are linked. Upcoming dashboards show the build window.

LIVE

🎀

My PinkPOWER Club

⭐ LIVE · Breast

FFH × Larry Fitzgerald Foundation

LIVE

💙

My BlueShield Club

⭐ LIVE · Colon

National + state + county data wired in

LIVE

🩸

My RedSHIELD Club

⭐ LIVE · Sickle Cell

Adjacent — blood disorder umbrella

🫁

Lung Dashboard

Q3 2026 build

#1 cancer killer · highest preventability via tobacco cessation

💜

Prostate Dashboard

Q3 2026 build

Most common in men · PSA screening 50-70

🟢

Ovarian Dashboard

Q4 2026 build

Silent killer · BRCA-linked · My Girl Power™ Series

💗

Cervical Dashboard

Q4 2026 build

HPV-driven · highly preventable via vaccine + screen

⬛

Melanoma Dashboard

Q1 2027 build

UV-driven · sun-protection prevention plays

🟠

Leukemia Dashboard

Q1 2027 build

Adult + pediatric crossover · blood-cancer umbrella

🌈

Pediatric Cancers

Q2 2027 build

Umbrella dashboard for childhood cancers

🧬

17 Other Cancers

Roadmap · 2027-2028

Bladder, kidney, thyroid, NHL, pancreatic, liver, etc.

Don't see your cancer? Scroll to the 26 Cancer Types grid below for current national data. Each cancer dashboard build adds ~4-6 weeks. If you'd like to sponsor or accelerate a specific cancer dashboard, contact Coach Lucy at lucy@theforceforhealth.com.

Trend lines

Cancers on the Rise & Decline · 5 / 10 / 25-Year View Dr. Rob + Sources Dr. Rob on Cancer TrendsWhy some cancers are exploding while others are vanishing
The biggest cancer story of the last 25 years isn't just incidence — it's direction. Cancers that respond to prevention plays (lung from tobacco cessation, cervical from HPV vaccine + Pap, stomach from H. pylori treatment, colorectal in age 50+ from screening) have plummeted. Cancers driven by obesity, alcohol, infections, environmental exposure, and overdiagnosis from imaging have surged.
The most concerning recent shift is young-onset cancer: colorectal, breast, pancreatic, and kidney cancers are rising in adults under 50 for reasons researchers are still investigating. Diet, microbiome, environmental exposure, obesity, and antibiotics are all under study.
📊 Data sources NCI SEER Cancer Statistics Review NCI Cancer Trends Progress Report CDC MMWR — Cancer Trends ACS — Annual Report to the Nation 2024 Lancet Public Health — Young-Onset Cancer Trends

US age-adjusted incidence trends from NCI SEER + ACS Annual Report to the Nation. Approximate cumulative % change over each window. Toggle the period to see how the picture shifts.

📈 On the Rise

Past 5 yrs

📉 In Decline

Past 5 yrs

Why these patterns?

⚠️ The Young-Onset Cancer Surge · Adults Under 50

Even as overall cancer rates fall in adults 50+, cancers in adults under 50 are rising sharply. Researchers don't yet have a complete answer for why — leading candidates: obesity, dietary changes, microbiome shifts, environmental exposures, antibiotic use in childhood, and sedentary lifestyle from earlier ages.

💙 Colorectal <50

+2.4%/yr · projected to be #1 cause of cancer death in 20-49 by 2030

🎀 Breast <50

~+0.8%/yr · most pronounced in women aged 20-39

💜 Pancreatic <50

~+0.6%/yr · concerning given low overall survival

🟠 Kidney <50

~+0.5%/yr · obesity + hypertension drivers

💚 Uterine <50

~+1%/yr · obesity-driven

🤍 Stomach <50

rising · contrasts with falling overall stomach cancer

Beyond the US

Global Cancer Snapshot · WHO GLOBOCAN 2022 Dr. Rob + Sources Dr. Rob on Global CancerThe cancer transition + why poor countries face it harder
Cancer is now the global #2 cause of death (after cardiovascular disease) — and projected to be #1 in low + middle income countries by 2030 as infectious diseases come under control and populations age. Today: ~20M new cases / yr · ~9.7M deaths / yr globally. By 2050: projected ~35M cases / yr, with the steepest rise in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
The disparity is brutal: high-income countries have ~2× the incidence of low-income countries — but low-income countries have higher mortality because diagnosis comes later and treatment access is limited. The same cervical cancer that's nearly eliminated in Australia (HPV vaccine + screening) still kills women routinely in sub-Saharan Africa.
📊 Data sources WHO IARC GLOBOCAN 2022 IARC World Cancer Day Statistics WHO Cancer Fact Sheet Lancet Global Burden of Disease — Cancer

The world has roughly 20 million new cancer cases each year and 9.7 million cancer deaths. The most common globally: lung, breast, colorectal, prostate, stomach. Trends and disparities vary sharply by region.

~20M

New cases globally · 2022

~9.7M

Deaths globally · 2022

~35M

Projected cases / yr by 2050

+77%

Growth · driven by aging + LMICs

🌍 Trend Direction by WHO Region

Click a region to see top cancers + what's driving the trend.

🏆 Top 10 Countries · All-Cancer Age-Standardized Incidence (per 100K, both sexes)

🌐 Top 5 Cancers Globally · 2022

🫁 Lung

2.5M new cases · 1.8M deaths · #1 worldwide

🎀 Breast

2.3M new cases · 685K deaths · #1 in women

💙 Colorectal

1.9M new cases · 904K deaths · rising worldwide

💜 Prostate

1.5M new cases · 397K deaths · #2 in men

🟣 Stomach

970K new cases · 660K deaths · concentrated in Asia

📍 The US in global context. The United States has a high incidence rate (~362/100K — 8th globally) but a relatively lower mortality rate due to widespread screening + advanced treatment access. Australia tops the world for incidence (~462/100K), driven heavily by melanoma + UV exposure. The lowest-incidence countries are mostly in sub-Saharan Africa — but that's largely because cancer is underdiagnosed there, not because it's truly less common.

A different cancer category

Pediatric Cancers · Childhood & Adolescent Dr. Rob Dr. Rob on Pediatric CancerWhy it's a separate category
Childhood cancer is biologically different from adult cancer. Adult cancers are mostly driven by accumulated lifestyle exposures over decades — smoking, sun, weight, alcohol. Childhood cancers don't have time for that. They tend to be driven by random genetic mistakes during rapid early-life cell division, plus rare inherited conditions.
What makes pediatric oncology hopeful: survival rates have transformed since 1975, when 5-year survival was ~58%. Today it's ~85%. That's one of the biggest medical achievements of the past 50 years — driven by clinical trials, multidisciplinary care, and pediatric oncology centers.
The hard reality: survivors face long-term side effects (heart, fertility, secondary cancers, learning challenges) that play out over decades. Survivorship care is part of the cancer fight, not the end of it.
📊 Data sources ACS — Cancer in Children + Adolescents NCI SEER Cancer Statistics Review St. Jude Children's Research Hospital CureSearch — Pediatric Cancer Research

Cancer in children + adolescents (ages 0-19) is rare compared to adult cancer — but it's the leading cause of disease-related death in children past infancy. The biology is different, the treatments are different, and the FFH approach treats pediatric cancer as its own dashboard family.

📊 Pediatric Cancer · The Numbers

Roughly 16,000 children and adolescents (ages 0-19) are diagnosed with cancer each year in the US. About 1,800 die annually. Survival has dramatically improved over 50 years — but treatment side effects can persist into adulthood, making survivorship care critical.

~16,000

New pediatric cases/yr

~1,800

Pediatric deaths/yr

~85%

5-yr survival (overall)

1 in 5

US cancer deaths under 20 are leukemia

🌈 Most Common Pediatric Cancer Types

🩸 Leukemias (ALL + AML)

28% of pediatric cancers

ALL is most common. 5-yr survival ~91% for ALL.

🧠 Brain & CNS Tumors

26% of pediatric cancers

Now leading cause of pediatric cancer death.

🟣 Lymphomas (HL + NHL)

12% of pediatric cancers

Hodgkin in adolescents, NHL across ages.

🫘 Neuroblastoma

6% of pediatric cancers

Affects nerve tissue. Most common in infants.

🟡 Wilms Tumor (kidney)

5% of pediatric cancers

Pediatric kidney cancer. 90%+ survival.

🦴 Bone Cancers

4% of pediatric cancers

Osteosarcoma + Ewing sarcoma. Adolescent peak.

🟠 Rhabdomyosarcoma

3% of pediatric cancers

Soft-tissue sarcoma. Most common in kids under 10.

👁️ Retinoblastoma

2% of pediatric cancers

Eye cancer. Almost exclusively under age 5.

🟢 Germ Cell Tumors

3% of pediatric cancers

Originate in reproductive cells.

FFH dashboard build target: Q2 2027 · The Pediatric Cancers umbrella will integrate with the My Girl Power™ Series and FFH Foundation's pediatric scholarship pathway. Sponsored builds welcomed earlier.

Where prevention lives

Risk Factors · What You Can + Cannot Change Dr. Rob Dr. Rob on Risk ClassificationWhat's modifiable, what isn't
Per Dr. Rob's classification system used across all FFH dashboards: only family history, age, biological sex, race/ancestry, and congenital conditions are non-modifiable. Everything else is on the modifiable list — and that's where prevention lives.
Obesity, diabetes, smoking, sedentary lifestyle, alcohol, sun exposure, and infection (HPV, Hepatitis, H. pylori) — all modifiable. Get them right and you knock out a meaningful percentage of your lifetime cancer risk before it starts.

The American Cancer Society estimates roughly 40% of cancer cases and 50% of cancer deaths in the US are linked to modifiable risk factors. Prevention isn't theoretical — it's quantified. Here's the full split.

✅ Modifiable Risks · You Can Change These

🚭Tobacco use — #1 cause of cancer death · ~30% of all US cancer deaths · linked to lung, head/neck, bladder, pancreatic, kidney, colon, leukemia, and more
⚖️Excess body weight + obesity — linked to 13 cancers including breast (post-menopausal), colorectal, endometrial, pancreatic, kidney, liver, gallbladder
🥃Alcohol consumption — Group 1 carcinogen · linked to breast, colon, liver, oral, esophageal cancers · risk rises with any amount
☀️UV / sun exposure — primary driver of melanoma + other skin cancers · sunscreen + protective clothing + avoiding tanning beds
🏃‍♀️Physical inactivity — independent of weight, sedentary lifestyle raises colon, breast, endometrial cancer risk
🥦Diet quality — high red/processed meat + low fiber + low fruits-vegetables linked to colon, stomach, esophageal cancers
🦠Chronic infections — HPV (cervical, anal, oral), Hepatitis B/C (liver), H. pylori (stomach), HIV (multiple) · vaccines + screening prevent
💊Hormone-replacement therapy (HRT) — nuanced, not one-way: long-term combined estrogen+progestin HRT raises breast cancer risk (and slightly lowers colorectal). Estrogen-only HRT (women without uterus) shows different effects per WHI long-term follow-up. Hormone-BLOCKING drugs (tamoxifen, aromatase inhibitors, androgen-deprivation) are cancer treatments, not causes — different mechanism entirely.
☢️Environmental + occupational exposures — radon (lung), asbestos (mesothelioma), benzene (leukemia), pesticides (NHL)
🛡️Screening behavior — not technically a risk, but skipping recommended screens means catching cancer late instead of early

🧬 Non-Modifiable Risks · Awareness Matters

⏳Age — most powerful single risk · most cancers occur after 50 · risk doubles roughly every decade past 30
👨‍👩‍👧Family history — ~5-10% of cancers are clearly hereditary (BRCA1/2, Lynch syndrome, FAP, Li-Fraumeni, etc.)
⚧️Biological sex — breast cancer ~99% female · prostate exclusively male · bladder + esophageal ~3-4x more in men
🌍Race + ancestry — disparities exist (e.g., Black women 40% higher breast cancer mortality despite lower incidence) · root causes are mostly social + access, not genetic
🔬Inherited genetic syndromes — BRCA1/2 (breast, ovarian), Lynch (colon, endometrial), FAP (colon), p53 (multiple), retinoblastoma gene
🏥Congenital + developmental conditions — Down syndrome (leukemia), neurofibromatosis (multiple), etc.
🩻Prior radiation therapy — past treatment for one cancer can raise risk of secondary cancers years later

The screening playbook

Screening Guidelines · at a Glance Dr. Rob + Sources Dr. Rob on ScreeningAverage risk vs. high risk
The table below shows guidelines for average-risk adults. If you have family history, BRCA mutation, Lynch syndrome, prior radiation, or any other elevated-risk condition, screening starts earlier and happens more often. Always discuss with your doctor.
The 5 cancers with screening that demonstrably reduces mortality: breast, cervical, colorectal, lung (in smokers), and prostate (with shared decision-making). Other cancers (ovarian, pancreatic, etc.) don't yet have effective population-wide screening — that's where prevention + symptom awareness matter most.
📊 Data sources USPSTF Recommendations ACS Screening by Age CDC Cancer Screening

Screening guidelines for average-risk adults · per USPSTF (US Preventive Services Task Force) + ACS (American Cancer Society). High-risk individuals start earlier + screen more often.

Cancer	Test	Start Age	Frequency
🎀 Breast (women)	Mammography	40	Every 2 yrs (USPSTF 2024) · annual under ACS
💙 Colorectal	Colonoscopy / FIT / Cologuard	45	Colonoscopy every 10 yrs · FIT yearly
💗 Cervical	Pap smear / HPV test	21	Pap every 3 yrs (21-29) · HPV co-test every 5 yrs (30-65)
🫁 Lung (smokers)	Low-dose CT	50	Annual · 50-80, 20+ pack-year smoking history
💜 Prostate (men)	PSA blood test	50	Discuss with doctor · 45 if Black or family history
⬛ Skin / Melanoma	Self-exam (ABCDE) · clinical exam	Any age	Self-exam monthly · clinical annual if higher risk
🩸 Oral	Visual exam during dental visit	Any age	Annual dental exam includes oral cancer screen
🟢 Liver (high risk)	Ultrasound + AFP	Variable	Every 6 months for cirrhosis or chronic Hep B
🩺 Gynecologic (women)	Pelvic exam · symptom awareness	Any age	Annual well-woman visit · know ovarian/endometrial symptoms

Guidelines for average-risk adults. ACS and USPSTF recommendations occasionally differ — discuss with your physician. If you have family history, known mutations, or prior cancer, your screening schedule will be different.

How cancer is treated

The Treatment Landscape · Five Pillars Dr. Rob + Sources Dr. Rob on Treatment SelectionHow oncologists actually choose between modalities
Treatment is decided by a multidisciplinary tumor board — surgeon, medical oncologist, radiation oncologist, pathologist, often radiology + palliative care all in the room. They look at: cancer type, stage (I-IV), tumor biology + biomarkers (HER2, EGFR, BRCA, PD-L1, MSI, KRAS, etc.), patient age + fitness, comorbidities, and patient preferences.
The shift over the past 15 years: from "one-size-fits-all" chemo to biomarker-driven precision treatment. A breast cancer patient today gets a different drug regimen based on whether her tumor is HER2+/-, hormone+/-, or triple-negative. Same for lung (EGFR/ALK/ROS1) and many others.
Always ask about clinical trials. Many of today's standard-of-care drugs were trials 5-10 years ago.
📊 Data sources NCCN Treatment Guidelines ASCO — American Society of Clinical Oncology ClinicalTrials.gov

Most cancer treatment plans combine more than one of these. The right combination depends on cancer type, stage, biology, age, and patient preferences.

🔪

Surgery

Removing the tumor + nearby tissue. Often first-line for solid tumors caught early. Curative when cancer is localized.

Oldest pillar

💊

Chemotherapy

Drugs that kill rapidly dividing cells. Used systemically for cancers that have spread or to shrink tumors before/after surgery.

Systemic

☢️

Radiation Therapy

High-energy beams that damage cancer cell DNA. Local treatment for tumors that can't be surgically removed or to clean up margins.

Local

🎯

Targeted Therapy

Drugs designed to attack specific genetic mutations or proteins in cancer cells (e.g., HER2 in breast, EGFR in lung, BRAF in melanoma). Less collateral damage than chemo.

Precision

🛡️

Immunotherapy

Drugs that unleash or train the patient's own immune system to attack cancer (checkpoint inhibitors, CAR-T, monoclonal antibodies). Transforming melanoma, lung, kidney, lymphoma outcomes.

Newest pillar

🧬

Hormone & Other

Hormone-blocking drugs for hormone-sensitive cancers (breast, prostate, endometrial). Plus stem-cell transplant, photodynamic, ablation, and emerging modalities.

Cancer-specific

⚡ Clinical trials matter. Roughly ~5% of US adult cancer patients enroll in clinical trials, but trials are how every modern therapy on this page got approved. Ask your oncologist what trials might be open for your specific cancer + biomarker profile. ClinicalTrials.gov is the federal registry.

Who's getting it

Demographic Trends · Race, Sex, Age Dr. Rob Dr. Rob on DisparitiesWhere the gap really is
Black Americans have the highest cancer mortality rate of any racial/ethnic group in the US across most cancers — even when incidence is lower (as in breast). Drivers are mostly access + screening + treatment delays, not biology.
Hispanic + Asian populations have lower overall cancer rates but higher rates for specific cancers (liver, stomach, gallbladder, cervical) often tied to infection patterns + immigration history.
The disparity story is the story of access: who gets screened, who gets diagnosed early, who gets to a high-quality cancer center, who can afford treatment. Move those, and the numbers move.

All-cancer-combined incidence rates per 100,000 (age-adjusted) by race/ethnicity. Mortality rates tell a sharper disparity story than incidence.

Incidence by Race/Ethnicity (per 100K, all cancers)

White

468

Black

453

AI/AN

370

Hispanic

359

API

295

SEER 2017-2021. White and Black incidence are similar overall — but specific cancer types vary widely.

Mortality by Race/Ethnicity (per 100K, all cancers)

Black

187

White

161

AI/AN

148

Hispanic

112

API

100

⚠️ Black Americans have the highest cancer mortality of any racial/ethnic group despite similar incidence to white Americans. That's the disparity story in one chart.

📈 Age is the biggest single risk factor. Roughly 87% of new cancer cases occur after age 50. The median age at cancer diagnosis is 66. That's why screening windows are calibrated to age. But — "young-onset" cancers (under 50) are rising for breast, colorectal, and pancreatic, and researchers don't yet fully know why. Diet, environment, microbiome, and obesity are all under investigation.

FFH PHIT Score connection

The PHIT Score · Cancer Sub-Indicators Dr. Rob + Sources Dr. Rob on PHIT Sub-IndicatorsWhy these 8 inputs (and not others)
The PHIT cancer sub-score weights 8 inputs because each one independently predicts outcomes: incidence + mortality (the headline numbers), screening adherence (catches cancer early), early-stage diagnosis rate (best stage-shift indicator), the disparity gap (equity floor), HPV vaccination + tobacco + obesity rates (the three biggest preventable drivers).
What's not in the score: alcohol consumption, environmental exposures, family-history density. Those move slowly and don't have reliable county-level data. If a county wants to move its PHIT score, the fastest levers are screening adherence + tobacco + obesity — not changing the underlying disease biology.
📊 Data sources County Health Rankings CDC PLACES Data ACS — Cancer Action Network State Reports

FFH's Public Health Improvement Tool (PHIT) Score rolls cancer-specific outcomes into the county + state composite. Cancer sub-indicators include incidence, mortality, screening adherence, early-stage diagnosis rate, and the Black:White mortality gap. PHIT lets you compare any county against state + national benchmarks in one glance.

What's in the all-cancer PHIT sub-score

Incidence — age-adjusted new cases per 100K
Mortality — age-adjusted deaths per 100K
Screening adherence — % of eligible adults up-to-date for breast, colorectal, cervical, lung (smokers)
Early-stage diagnosis rate — % of cancers caught at Stage I-II vs. Stage III-IV
Disparity gap — Black:White mortality ratio (county or state level)
HPV vaccination coverage — % of adolescents up-to-date (cervical + oral cancer prevention)
Tobacco use rate — % adults smoking (lung + multiple-cancer prevention)
Obesity rate — % adults with BMI ≥30 (linked to 13 cancers)

Each individual cancer dashboard surfaces its own PHIT sub-score so a county can see, for example, "we're average overall but our breast cancer screening rate is in the bottom 20% — that's where to invest." Cancer ZIP-code lookup launches in the breast cancer + colon cancer dashboards now.

The numbers that matter

Key Facts at a Glance Dr. Rob + Sources Dr. Rob on Reading StatisticsWhich numbers to trust + how they're produced
The four authoritative cancer-statistics sources in the US are: ACS Cancer Facts & Figures (annual, projected estimates), NCI SEER (gold-standard registry data, 2-3 year lag), CDC USCS (covers ~98% of US population), and the Annual Report to the Nation (NCI + CDC + ACS + NAACCR consensus, published yearly).
Numbers don't always match across sources because they use different reference periods, different age-adjustment standards, and different statistical models. Don't worry about ±5% differences — focus on direction and magnitude.
Be cautious of: blog/social-media "statistics" without primary sources, projections more than 5 years out (uncertainty grows fast), and any number that doesn't specify incidence vs mortality vs survival.
📊 Data sources ACS Cancer Facts & Figures NCI SEER CDC US Cancer Statistics Annual Report to the Nation

~2.04M

New cancer cases in US in 2026 (estimated)

ACS Facts & Figures 2026

~620K

Cancer deaths in US in 2026 (estimated)

ACS Facts & Figures 2026

68%

5-year relative survival across all cancers (up from 49% in mid-1970s)

SEER 2014-2020

~40%

Of US cancer cases attributable to modifiable risks

ACS

~50%

Of US cancer DEATHS attributable to modifiable risks

ACS

~30%

Of all US cancer deaths caused by smoking

CDC

1 in 8

US women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime

ACS

1 in 8

US men will develop prostate cancer in their lifetime

ACS

1 in 23

Lifetime colorectal cancer risk (combined)

ACS

~16K

US children + teens diagnosed with cancer each year

ACS

~85%

5-yr survival for pediatric cancer (up from ~58% in 1975)

NCI SEER

~18M

US cancer survivors alive today (projected 22M by 2030)

NCI

What Is Cancer?
The Numbers, Names, and Reality

"Cancer rates" — incidence vs. mortality vs. survival

📈 On the Rise

📉 In Decline

⚠️ The Young-Onset Cancer Surge · Adults Under 50

🌍 Trend Direction by WHO Region

🏆 Top 10 Countries · All-Cancer Age-Standardized Incidence (per 100K, both sexes)

🌐 Top 5 Cancers Globally · 2022

📊 Pediatric Cancer · The Numbers

🌈 Most Common Pediatric Cancer Types

✅ Modifiable Risks · You Can Change These

🧬 Non-Modifiable Risks · Awareness Matters

Surgery

Chemotherapy

Radiation Therapy

Targeted Therapy

Immunotherapy

Hormone & Other

Incidence by Race/Ethnicity (per 100K, all cancers)

Mortality by Race/Ethnicity (per 100K, all cancers)

What's in the all-cancer PHIT sub-score

Cancer is rarely one disease. Care is rarely one size.

What Is Cancer?The Numbers, Names, and Reality

"Cancer rates" — incidence vs. mortality vs. survival

📈 On the Rise

📉 In Decline

⚠️ The Young-Onset Cancer Surge · Adults Under 50

🌍 Trend Direction by WHO Region

🏆 Top 10 Countries · All-Cancer Age-Standardized Incidence (per 100K, both sexes)

🌐 Top 5 Cancers Globally · 2022

📊 Pediatric Cancer · The Numbers

🌈 Most Common Pediatric Cancer Types

✅ Modifiable Risks · You Can Change These

🧬 Non-Modifiable Risks · Awareness Matters

Surgery

Chemotherapy

Radiation Therapy

Targeted Therapy

Immunotherapy

Hormone & Other

Incidence by Race/Ethnicity (per 100K, all cancers)

Mortality by Race/Ethnicity (per 100K, all cancers)

What's in the all-cancer PHIT sub-score

Cancer is rarely one disease. Care is rarely one size.

What Is Cancer?
The Numbers, Names, and Reality