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Breast cancer numbers are rising sharply in the United States, driven by increases among younger women and Asian Americans, although the disease has become less deadly, according to a study released Tuesday.
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The number of cases increased by 1% each year between 2012 and 2021in a context of drastic decline in the mortality rate, which fell by 44% between 1989 and 2022, revealed the American Cancer Society in its biennial report.
Breast cancer is the second most diagnosed cancer among American women and the second leading cause of cancer death, after lung cancer.
Approximately one in eight American women will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer throughout their life, and one in 43, that is, 2%, will die from this disease.
Over the past decade, the report found, breast cancer rates rose more rapidly among women under 50 than among those older – 1.4% annually versus 0.7% annually – for reasons that are not clear. clear at first glance.
By race, Asian-American women had the fastest increase in incidence, followed by Hispanic women, which the document said “may be related in part to the influx of new immigrants, who have an elevated risk of breast cancer.” mother”.
In general, the mortality rate from breast cancer decreased by 44%from 33 deaths per 100,000 women in 1989 to 19 deaths per 100,000 in 2022, which translated into some 517,900 deaths prevented.
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But despite decades of medical advances in treatment and early detection, the benefits have been felt unevenly.
Mortality has remained unchanged since 1990 among Native Americans, while black women experience 38% more deaths than white women despite having 5% fewer cases.
These conclusions highlight the impact of “social factors” on health and “long-standing systemic racism that has led to reduced access to quality care.”
The authors recommended increasing racial diversity in clinical trials, as well as establishing partnerships that boost access to high-quality screening for the most disadvantaged women.
In April, an independent U.S. medical body suggested that women start getting mammograms at age 40, rather than 50, and get them every two years.
