ATALANTA – The American Cancer Society published this Thursday a report showcasing that U.S. cancer mortality rate has dropped by a third in the past three decades. The positive results, says the report, are thanks to changes in preventative measures and screening.

A notable example is the 65% drop of Cervical cancer rate, from 2012 to 2019, among women in their early 20s, since younger women are being vaccinated against human papillomavirus, or HPV, for the first time.

On the other hand, a noted increase in advance prostate cancer diagnoses, most likely explained by the decline in usage of a controversial test for that type of cancer, threatens to reverse these hard-won gains.

Karen Knudsen, ACS’s chief executive officer said that “There’s a significant call to arms” and continued “We are not catching these cancers early when we have an opportunity to cure men of prostate cancer.”

The ACS announced that it would invest in more research on prostate cancer programs to boost access to quality screening and treatment.

Source: WSJ