US Cancer Mortality Declines Through 2022 Despite Pandemic Disruptions

The 2024 Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer reveals a continued decline in overall cancer mortality rates in the United States from 2001 through 2022. Cancer incidence rates decreased from 2001 through 2013 and remained stable through 2021, with a noted temporary drop in 2020 potentially linked to the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on healthcare utilization.

Data collected by the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries show that cancer incidence rates stabilized among males from 2013 to 2021 and increased marginally among females by 0.3% annually from 2003 to 2021, excluding 2020. Mortality rates for cancer deaths per 100,000 individuals were 173 for males and 126 for females, with a 1.5% annual decline in death rates between 2018 and 2022, slowing compared to previous years.

The temporary reduction in cancer diagnoses during 2020 did not persist into 2021, suggesting some recovery in cancer detection and reporting; however, further data are necessary to determine if there is an ongoing underdiagnosis or underreporting effect.

These trends are critical to understanding the dynamic impact of public health disruptions like the pandemic on cancer care and can inform insurer and provider strategies centered on oncology care delivery, resource allocation, and claims management in an evolving healthcare environment.