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Statistics at a Glance

At a Glance

Cancer is a major public health concern that can affect anyone. However, in the United States, certain population groups suffer more from cancer and its effects. This is known as cancer disparitiesExternal Web Site Policy or cancer health disparities. Cancer disparities happen when there are higher rates of new cancer diagnoses and/or cancer deaths between population groups. These can include different racial/ethnic, sex, age, and socioeconomic groups.

Cancer Incidence and Death Rates by Race/Ethnicity
Race/Ethnicity SEER 18 Incidence Rates U.S. Mortality RAtes
All Races 439.2 163.5
White 448.8 163.8
Black 453.4 189.8
Hispanic 336.3 115.0
Asian/Pacific Islander 297.9 102.0
American Indian/Alaska Native 315.1 150.4

Sex and Race/Ethnicity

How Many People Are Diagnosed with Cancer Each Year by Sex and Race/Ethnicity?

For all cancers combined, black men have the highest rate of new cancer diagnoses, and Asian/Pacific Islander women have the lowest rate of new cancer diagnoses. The number of new cases for men was 483.0 per 100,000 men per year. The number of new cases for women was 409.9 per 100,000 women per year. These rates are age-adjusted and based on 2011-2015 cases.

Male
All Races 483.0
White 488.5
Black 535.0
Hispanic 362.9
Asian/Pacific Islander 303.5
American Indian/Alaska Native 325.6
Female
All Races 409.9
White 423.1
Black 397.8
Hispanic 322.9
Asian/Pacific Islander 298.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 311.4

Source: SEER 18 2011-2015, Age-Adjusted Rate per 100,000

How Many People Die of Cancer Each Year by Sex and Race/Ethnicity?

Among both men and women, blacks have the highest cancer death rates, and Asian/Pacific Islander have the lowest cancer death rates. The number of deaths for men was 196.8 per 100,000 men per year. The number of deaths for women was 139.6 per 100,000 women per year. These rates are age-adjusted and based on 2011-2015 cases.

Male
All Races 196.8
White 196.4
Black 239.9
Hispanic 140.6
Asian/Pacific Islander 121.2
American Indian/Alaska Native 181.5
Female
All Races 139.6
White 140.0
Black 159.0
Hispanic 97.1
Asian/Pacific Islander 88.3
American Indian/Alaska Native 127.6

Source: U.S. Mortality 2011-2015, Age-Adjusted Rate per 100,000

Cancer Sites by Sex and Race/Ethnicity

For all cancers and races/ethnicities combined, women are more likely to be diagnosed with cancer than men, but men are more likely to die from the disease.

Estimated New Cancer Cases (2018):
All Races/Ethnicities
Females 878,980 (51%)
Males 856,370 (49%)
Estimated Cancer Deaths (2018):
All Races/Ethnicities
Females 286,010 (47%)
Males 323,630 (53%)

How Do Rates of New Cancer Cases Compare by Cancer Site, Sex, and Race/Ethnicity?

The rate of new cancer cases varies significantly by specific cancer site and by race/ethnicity.

Men
For all cancers combined, black men have the highest rate of new cancer diagnoses. The most common cancers in men are prostate, lung and bronchus, and colorectal. The graphs below show the trends in the number of new cases by race/ethnicity for the three most common cancer sites in men between 2006-2015.

Prostate Cancer:
Number of New Cases per 100,000 Men by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 158.1 169.9 242.9 246.3 92.0 100.3 90.4 93.9 134.3 136.1
2007 162.0 158.8 252.0 244.6 96.5 93.1 91.2 87.2 133.8 132.0
2008 147.8 148.5 238.1 243.0 84.2 86.3 76.8 81.0 128.3 128.0
2009 142.7 138.8 238.6 241.4 83.0 80.1 75.2 75.3 124.9 124.1
2010 135.6 129.8 223.3 223.7 76.8 74.3 78.7 69.9 120.0 120.4
2011 133.1 121.4 217.5 207.2 76.8 69.0 60.3 64.9 111.5 108.8
2012 108.5 113.5 188.8 191.9 61.9 64.0 57.9 60.3 96.0 98.4
2013 102.5 106.1 176.9 177.8 57.4 59.4 57.4 56.0 86.1 89.0
2014 93.0 99.2 156.7 164.7 50.1 55.1 53.0 52.0 80.5 80.5
2015 93.9 92.7 157.6 152.5 52.4 51.1 46.9 48.3 74.7 72.8
Male Lung and Bronchus Cancer:
Number of New Cases per 100,000 Men by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 78.8 79.8 102.2 104.1 53.8 54.4 52.1 54.7 39.2 41.9
2007 77.1 77.4 98.2 100.6 52.6 53.1 56.8 53.4 44.4 40.7
2008 75.4 75.0 97.7 97.1 53.4 51.9 49.4 52.1 39.9 39.5
2009 73.9 72.7 99.7 93.8 50.3 50.6 50.6 50.9 38.7 38.3
2010 71.0 70.5 89.6 90.6 49.6 49.5 55.4 49.7 34.6 37.1
2011 67.8 68.3 87.0 87.5 46.9 48.3 44.8 48.5 36.1 36.0
2012 66.1 66.2 85.4 84.5 47.8 47.2 42.9 47.3 34.2 35.0
2013 63.9 64.2 79.5 81.6 48.3 46.1 54.3 46.2 34.9 33.9
2014 62.8 62.2 80.8 78.8 42.5 45.0 42.2 45.1 33.1 32.9
2015 59.7 60.3 74.5 76.1 44.4 43.9 42.8 44.0 31.8 31.9
Male Colorectal Cancer:
Number of New Cases per 100,000 Men by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 54.5 55.6 69.5 70.3 46.9 47.6 42.6 44.9 47.1 48.4
2007 54.1 53.6 67.4 68.0 46.6 46.3 41.0 45.0 46.5 47.1
2008 52.9 51.7 67.1 65.7 44.7 45.0 41.7 45.1 47.4 45.8
2009 50.0 49.8 65.0 63.6 44.2 43.8 52.4 45.2 46.0 44.6
2010 47.6 48.0 60.3 61.5 42.0 42.6 48.8 45.3 41.9 43.4
2011 46.0 46.3 59.1 59.5 43.0 41.5 51.3 45.4 43.9 42.3
2012 44.9 44.7 58.1 57.5 39.4 40.4 41.7 45.5 40.9 41.1
2013 43.4 44.2 56.8 55.6 39.9 39.3 42.8 45.7 38.8 40.0
2014 44.8 43.8 50.8 53.8 39.4 38.2 44.3 45.8 38.3 39.0
2015 43.0 43.4 53.4 52.0 35.7 37.2 45.7 45.9 38.6 37.9

Women
For all cancers combined, white women have the highest rate of new cancer diagnoses. The most common cancers in women are breast, lung and bronchus, and colorectal. The graphs below show the trends in the number of new cases by race/ethnicity for the three most common cancer sites in women between 2006-2015.

Female Breast Cancer:
Number of New Cases per 100,000 Women by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 126.3 128.2 120.0 122.9 90.2 92.6 77.6 79.4 88.0 88.4
2007 128.9 128.2 125.3 123.4 94.5 93.7 77.1 79.9 89.1 88.9
2008 129.3 128.3 124.2 124.0 98.0 94.8 79.1 80.4 89.6 89.3
2009 130.5 128.3 128.4 124.5 94.8 96.0 86.0 81.0 88.5 89.8
2010 126.0 128.4 121.4 125.1 97.1 97.1 83.5 81.5 85.8 90.3
2011 128.9 128.4 125.6 125.6 98.4 98.3 83.5 82.0 95.9 90.7
2012 128.4 128.5 127.2 126.2 98.3 99.4 85.5 82.5 92.2 91.2
2013 128.8 128.5 127.0 126.8 102.5 100.6 75.3 83.0 93.3 91.7
2014 128.2 128.6 127.1 127.3 100.2 101.8 86.1 83.5 92.2 92.2
2015 128.6 128.6 127.4 127.9 103.3 103.0 83.1 84.1 90.3 92.7
Female Lung and Bronchus Cancer:
Number of New Cases per 100,000 Women by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 56.2 57.0 53.9 54.8 29.4 29.5 42.9 39.6 23.0 24.7
2007 56.4 56.0 53.3 53.8 28.8 29.3 33.3 38.3 24.3 24.4
2008 55.4 55.0 52.5 52.8 27.7 29.1 42.0 37.1 24.4 24.1
2009 55.1 54.0 53.0 51.9 31.0 28.9 32.5 35.9 25.0 23.8
2010 52.4 53.1 52.9 51.0 27.9 28.6 33.5 34.7 24.0 23.6
2011 51.7 52.2 48.7 50.0 29.1 28.4 35.7 33.6 23.5 23.3
2012 51.0 51.2 49.7 49.1 28.6 28.2 32.0 32.6 22.6 23.0
2013 50.6 50.3 47.7 48.2 28.1 28.0 29.3 31.5 24.5 22.7
2014 49.8 49.5 48.1 47.4 27.6 27.7 24.2 30.5 21.4 22.5
2015 48.4 48.6 45.6 46.5 27.0 27.5 35.3 29.6 21.4 22.2
Female Colorectal Cancer:
Number of New Cases per 100,000 Women by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 40.7 41.1 53.3 53.7 34.2 35.6 41.3 40.5 32.1 32.6
2007 39.8 39.9 53.2 51.8 34.4 34.4 37.3 39.2 33.4 32.0
2008 39.2 38.6 48.4 50.0 34.2 33.3 38.5 37.9 31.0 31.4
2009 37.9 37.4 49.0 48.3 32.6 32.2 37.4 36.6 30.9 30.8
2010 36.0 36.3 46.8 46.7 32.5 31.2 35.7 35.4 30.3 30.2
2011 35.0 35.1 44.6 45.1 30.3 30.2 35.4 36.7 29.5 29.6
2012 34.7 34.6 44.1 43.5 28.7 29.2 36.9 37.9 28.1 29.0
2013 33.5 34.1 41.2 42.0 27.1 28.3 40.8 39.2 27.0 28.4
2014 33.9 33.6 41.4 40.6 27.3 27.3 41.7 40.5 28.9 27.9
2015 33.1 33.1 38.9 39.2 26.8 26.5 40.7 41.9 27.9 27.3

How Do Cancer Death Rates Compare by Cancer Site, Sex, and Race/Ethnicity?

Cancer death rates vary significantly by specific cancer site and by race/ethnicity.

Men
Black men have the highest death rate for all cancer sites combined. The most common causes of cancer death in men are lung and bronchus, prostate, and colorectal cancer. The graphs below show the trends in the number of deaths by race/ethnicity for the three most common causes of cancer death in men between 2006-2015.

Male Lung and Bronchus Cancer:
Number of Deaths per 100,000 Men by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 67.0 66.9 83.9 84.2 37.0 37.4 44.5 51.6 32.7 33.5
2007 64.8 65.1 82.2 81.3 36.1 36.5 52.3 50.6 32.0 32.4
2008 63.5 63.3 78.2 78.5 36.3 35.5 57.0 49.7 32.5 31.3
2009 61.4 61.5 75.5 75.8 34.9 34.6 45.9 48.8 30.2 30.3
2010 59.9 59.8 73.5 73.3 33.5 33.8 48.9 47.9 29.5 29.3
2011 57.8 58.1 70.0 70.8 33.0 32.9 47.7 47.0 29.0 28.4
2012 56.1 56.0 68.9 68.3 32.6 32.1 46.9 46.1 27.1 27.5
2013 53.9 53.9 66.0 66.0 30.8 31.3 44.0 45.2 26.5 26.6
2014 52.0 51.9 62.5 62.5 30.0 30.5 44.3 44.4 25.5 25.7
2015 49.9 50.0 59.1 59.1 30.0 29.7 42.6 43.6 24.9 24.9
Prostate Cancer:
Number of Deaths per 100,000 Men by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 22.3 22.4 53.7 55.5 10.4 10.7 19.4 21.1 20.6 20.4
2007 22.2 21.8 54.9 53.0 11.2 10.4 22.7 20.9 20.0 19.7
2008 21.3 21.2 49.1 50.6 9.9 10.1 23.0 20.7 19.1 19.1
2009 20.3 20.6 49.4 48.4 9.8 9.9 18.8 20.5 18.1 18.5
2010 20.1 20.0 48.1 46.2 9.5 9.6 19.8 20.4 18.3 17.9
2011 19.3 19.4 44.0 44.1 9.5 9.4 22.2 20.2 17.3 17.4
2012 18.1 18.8 41.6 42.2 8.4 9.1 17.9 20.0 16.5 16.8
2013 18.0 18.3 39.1 40.3 8.7 8.9 17.5 19.9 15.9 16.3
2014 17.9 17.7 38.0 38.5 8.4 8.7 20.2 19.7 15.5 15.8
2015 17.7 17.2 37.5 36.8 9.0 8.4 21.1 19.5 16.0 15.3
Male Colorectal Cancer:
Number of Deaths per 100,000 Men by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 20.0 20.1 31.3 30.7 12.9 12.8 18.1 17.9 16.4 16.6
2007 19.7 19.6 29.3 29.7 13.0 13.2 17.4 18.2 15.7 16.3
2008 19.0 19.1 28.7 28.8 14.0 13.6 22.0 18.5 16.4 16.0
2009 18.6 18.5 27.0 27.8 12.8 13.3 16.7 18.9 16.1 15.8
2010 18.1 18.1 27.5 26.9 13.1 13.0 19.3 19.2 15.7 15.5
2011 17.5 17.6 26.2 26.1 12.7 12.7 20.5 19.6 15.1 15.3
2012 17.1 17.1 25.4 25.2 12.7 12.4 15.9 19.9 14.9 15.0
2013 16.9 16.8 24.6 24.4 12.0 12.1 21.6 20.3 15.2 14.8
2014 16.4 16.5 23.1 23.7 12.0 11.8 20.1 20.7 14.3 14.5
2015 16.2 16.2 23.1 22.9 11.4 11.5 22.5 21.0 14.1 14.3

Women
Black women have the highest death rate for all cancer sites combined, however, rates vary significantly by specific cancer site. The most common causes of cancer death in women are lung and bronchus, breast, and colorectal cancer. The graphs below show the trends in the number of deaths by race/ethnicity for the three most common causes of cancer death in women between 2006-2015.

Female Lung and Bronchus Cancer:
Number of Deaths per 100,000 Women by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 41.4 41.5 39.1 38.6 18.2 18.7 33.3 34.3 14.1 14.5
2007 41.3 41.0 38.1 38.0 19.0 18.6 34.1 33.7 15.0 14.3
2008 40.4 40.5 36.9 37.3 18.1 18.4 35.9 33.2 14.3 14.1
2009 40.0 40.0 35.9 36.6 18.3 18.3 31.8 32.7 13.7 14.0
2010 39.2 39.2 36.3 36.0 18.1 18.2 31.1 32.2 13.7 13.8
2011 38.2 38.3 35.4 35.4 18.5 18.0 30.2 31.7 13.3 13.7
2012 37.6 37.5 34.7 34.7 17.8 17.9 32.1 31.2 13.6 13.5
2013 36.6 36.7 34.1 34.1 18.1 17.8 31.4 30.7 13.2 13.4
2014 36.0 35.9 32.8 32.5 17.7 17.6 29.5 30.2 13.5 13.2
2015 34.9 35.1 30.8 30.9 17.1 17.5 30.0 29.7 13.1 13.1
Female Breast Cancer:
Number of Deaths per 100,000 Women by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 23.0 22.8 31.6 31.9 12.1 11.4 16.2 16.1 15.4 15.1
2007 22.4 22.5 31.4 31.4 11.1 11.4 16.3 15.8 14.9 14.9
2008 22.0 22.1 31.0 30.9 11.5 11.4 15.3 15.6 14.6 14.8
2009 21.8 21.7 30.2 30.4 11.1 11.4 15.9 15.3 14.8 14.7
2010 21.3 21.4 30.2 30.0 11.7 11.4 14.2 15.1 14.3 14.6
2011 20.9 21.0 30.2 29.5 11.2 11.5 14.9 14.8 14.1 14.5
2012 20.7 20.7 29.4 29.1 11.3 11.5 14.9 14.6 14.7 14.4
2013 20.3 20.3 28.2 28.6 11.1 11.5 13.5 14.4 14.6 14.3
2014 20.0 20.0 28.1 28.2 11.6 11.5 13.2 14.1 14.6 14.2
2015 19.8 19.7 27.6 27.7 11.8 11.5 15.2 13.9 13.6 14.1
Female Colorectal Cancer:
Number of Deaths per 100,000 Women by Race/Ethnicity
Year White Black Asian/Pacific Islander American Indian/Alaska Native Hispanic
Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate Rate Modeled Rate
2006 14.3 14.3 20.3 20.4 10.1 10.2 12.9 12.6 11.3 10.9
2007 13.9 13.9 19.9 19.7 10.0 9.9 14.2 14.8 10.6 10.6
2008 13.5 13.4 19.0 19.0 9.9 9.7 18.2 17.4 9.9 10.3
2009 12.8 13.0 18.5 18.4 8.8 9.5 16.9 16.5 10.1 10.0
2010 12.6 12.5 17.6 17.8 9.8 9.3 14.8 15.8 9.4 9.8
2011 12.3 12.3 17.7 17.2 9.3 9.1 14.4 15.0 9.5 9.5
2012 12.0 12.1 16.2 16.6 9.4 8.9 14.1 14.3 9.2 9.2
2013 11.9 11.9 15.7 16.1 8.2 8.7 15.4 13.7 9.1 9.0
2014 11.7 11.7 15.3 15.5 7.8 8.5 11.6 13.0 8.7 8.7
2015 11.5 11.5 15.5 15.0 8.7 8.3 12.9 12.4 8.6 8.5

More About Cancer and Cancer Disparities

More Information

Here are some resources for learning more about cancer:

Here are some resources for learning more about cancer disparities:

References

All statistics in this report are based on statistics from SEER and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics. Most can be found within:

Noone AM, Howlader N, Krapcho M, Miller D, Brest A, Yu M, Ruhl J, Tatalovich Z, Mariotto A, Lewis DR, Chen HS, Feuer EJ, Cronin KA (eds). SEER Cancer Statistics Review, 1975-2015, National Cancer Institute. Bethesda, MD, https://seer.cancer.gov/csr/1975_2015/, based on November 2017 SEER data submission, posted to the SEER web site, April 2018.

Suggested Citation

All material in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission; citation as to source, however, is appreciated.

SEER Cancer Statistics Factsheets: Common Cancer Sites. National Cancer Institute. Bethesda, MD, https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/disparities.html