International cancer mortality comparisons

Decreases, if any, in mortality from all forms of cancer combined have been relatively small in the past few decades. In fact, until recently, the U.S. age-adjusted cancer mortality rates have trended slowly upward, while other countries showed mixed results. Roughly half of the 15 countries studied experienced higher cancer death rates. Analysis of U.S. mortality by age group revealed a dramatic split in the pattern of death rate changes. Both men and women aged 55 and over generally recorded increases in mortality between 1970 and 1980, as well as between 1980 and 1990, while rates among younger persons declined. During this period mortality from respiratory cancer increased rapidly, especially among women.