Rise in Prostate Cancer Diagnoses Prompts ACS to ‘Call to Arms’

The latest trends in cancer incidence in the United States show both good and bad news, as highlighted in the latest annual report from the American Cancer Society (ACS).

The good news is an “incredible” 65% drop Cervical cancer incidence among women in their early twenties, the first cohort to have access to human papillomavirus (VPH), noted ACS Chief Executive Officer Karen E. Knudsen, MBA, PhD.

The bad news is an alarming 3% annual increase in Prostate cancer incidence from 2014 to 2019 after two decades of declining incidence.

“The most disturbing thing is that this [prostate cancer] the increase was driven by the diagnosis of advanced disease,” Knudsen said, noting that the highest incidence and mortality rates were among black men. increase in late-stage disease diagnoses has also been pointed out by others, as reported Medscape Medical News.

This slight increase in prostate cancer has prompted a new ACS initiative called IMPACT: Improving Prostate Cancer Mortality Together, to “mobilize resources through advocacy, patient support and research”, she announced.

ACS Scientific Director William Dahut, MD explained that “IMPACT will fund bold new cancer research programs that connect the laboratory, clinic and community…to help discern who is most at risk of cancer. prostate cancer and how to prevent it.”

Overall cancer deaths and incidence

Cervical cancer and prostate cancer rates represent outliers at opposite ends of the spectrum. Overall, the data shows a 33% drop in cancer mortality since 1991, equivalent to around 3.8 million cancer deaths averted, according to the report, titled Cancer statistics, 2023.

Notably, cancer deaths continued to decline after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, dropping 1.5% from 2019 to 2020.

The report was published online today in CA: A cancer journal for clinicians. A friendly companion, Cancer facts and figures 2023visible on cancer.org.

By examining the occurrence and outcome of cancer in the population using incidence data from central cancer registries and mortality data from CDC National Center for Health Statisticsthe ACS projects that there will be 1,958,310 new cases of cancer and 609,820 cancer deaths in the United States in 2023.

Trends in cancer incidence were mixed, but were better in men than in women. The incidence of lung cancer from 2015 to 2019, for example, decreased by 2.6% for men and 1.1% for women.

Cancers of the breast and of the uterine body, as well as liver cancer and melanomacontinued to increase in women, stabilized in men aged 50 and over, and decreased in younger men.

The ACS attributes the overall decline in cancer mortality to advances in treatments, particularly for leukaemia, melanoma and kidney cancerand the accelerated decline of lung cancer.

Cervical cancer: the story of a vaccine success

The steep 65% drop in cervical cancer incidence among women aged 20-24 between 2012 and 2019 – compared to a 20%-30% drop in pre-HPV vaccine cohorts over the past decade – highlights the value of HPV vaccination and provides “clear population-level evidence that vaccination can reduce cancer incidence and provides optimism for expanding research towards the development of additional vaccines for cancer prevention,” said a ACS press release Remarks.

“The sharp decline in cervical cancer incidence is extremely exciting as this is the first group of women to receive the HPV vaccine, and it likely foreshadows a sharp reduction in other HPV-associated cancers. “, Rebecca Siegel, MPH, lead author of the report and ACS Senior Scientific Director, Surveillance Research, said in the press release.

Knudsen noted that HPV vaccination rates are only around 32%, and while cervical cancer rates are even higher in unvaccinated women, the data shows evidence of a herd effect.

“Increased investment in strategies to harness the immune system in cancer prevention is warranted,” added lead author Ahmedin Jemal, DVM, PhD, chair, surveillance science and health equity at the ‘ACS.

Prostate cancer: “An important call to arms”

As the most commonly diagnosed malignancy in men and the second leading cause of cancer death in men, prostate cancer has profound but disparate effects on health and finances. About 200,000 prostate cancer diagnoses are expected in the United States this year, accounting for nearly a third of all cancers in men, Knudsen said.

Incidence rates are 70% higher among black men than white men, and death rates among black men are 2 to 4 times higher than those of all other racial and ethnic groups, Dahut added. .

Cure rates for localized prostate cancer are excellent and survival is close to 99%.

The problem, as described in the ACS report based on a 2022 study conducted by Knudsen and colleagues, is that more prostate cancers are detected at later stages when 5-year survival is only around 32%, she explained. Since 2011, the diagnosis of advanced disease has increased by 4% to 5% per year, and the proportion of men diagnosed with advanced disease has doubled.

“We need to catch these cancers early,” she said, calling the results a “significant call to arms.” This is where the IMPACT initiative comes in.

Make an IMPACT

In addition to research focused on risk-based prevention strategies, the IMPACT initiative will also work to promote greater access to testing and quality care in all communities, and to advance public policies that will address the burden of prostate cancer in the United States.

“ACS is committed to using a three-pronged strategy to reverse prostate cancer disparities and reduce prostate cancer death rates across all demographics and disparities for Black men by 2035,” said Knudsen said. The initiative’s goals “can only be achieved through community partnerships, including standing side-by-side with trusted organizations that share our vision to meaningfully address disparities in prostate cancer.”

CA Cancer J Clin. Cancer Statistics, 2023. Published online January 12, 2023. Full Text

Sharon Worcester, MA, is an award-winning medical journalist based in Birmingham, Alabama, writing for Medscape, MDedge, and other affiliate sites. She currently covers oncology, but has also written on a variety of other medical specialties and healthcare topics. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter: @SW_MedReporter

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