It’s tough to ignore the flurry of headlines decrying rising cancer rates, especially among young women and nonsmokers. But it seems now there is a reason for hope. According to the annual American Cancer Society (ACS) report released on January 13, more people are surviving cancer. The findings show that seven in 10 people with cancer now survive for at least five years, up from just half of patients in the 1970s.
Of particular note: The five-year survival rate for metastatic cancer (the late-stage type that has spread beyond its origin site) has doubled since the 1990s, meaning more people are surviving the deadliest cancers too.
Some of the biggest improvements have happened in the more fatal cancers that are rising in women, like liver cancer, lung cancer, and melanoma, Arif Kamal, MD, MBA, chief patient officer at ACS, tells SELF. And there have been sizable jumps in survival from ovarian cancer and breast cancer; in fact, the reduction of the breast cancer mortality rate by 42% since the 90s reflects one of the largest drops in mortality across cancer types, Dr. Kamal adds. (One notable exception here is uterine cancer, which is becoming more fatal, in large part due to a rising proportion of more aggressive types, particularly among Black women.)
The result is a record 18 million cancer survivors in the US right now, a number expected to grow between 300,000 and 500,000 annually over the next 10 years. In turn, a cancer diagnosis is often no longer a death sentence; it unfolds more like a chronic disease. And that shift requires a different conversation around cancer, Dr. Kamal says.
“We need to dispel the myths that all cancer patients are bed-bound, tired all the time. You know what the average cancer patient looks like? They’re going to work, they’re doing the things they love. And they don’t need to be bubble-wrapped.” Just like the rest of us, “they do better when they’re socially supported,” he says—whether it’s been days, months, or, increasingly, years since they received their diagnosis.
Why more people are surviving cancer, even as rates rise
Research suggests more people getting cancer is due to a mix of environmental factors (like chemicals in our food, air, water, and household products) and lifestyle behaviors (like reduced physical activity and increased alcohol consumption). Interestingly, there is one positive lifestyle trend that could be driving lower death rates, particularly from lung cancer: a decline in smoking—down from about 44% of people in the 1960s to 11% now. The fact that women are less likely to smoke than men may help them out even more here, Dr. Kamal says.
