Prostate Cancer Death Rates Have Dropped About 50 Percent In The Past 2 Decades, According To New Study

World renowned robotic prostate surgeon, Dr. David Samadi, encourages men to get screened for prostate cancer early, and often.  A new study suggests that 1.7 million cancer deaths have been avoided between 1991 and 2012, and most of these are a direct result of cancer prevention, early detection and aggressive treatment of cancers.

Overall, the study, part of the American Cancer Society’s latest annual report on cancer incidence, mortality, and survival, found that there was been a 23% drop in cancer deaths since 1991.  The findings are included in Cancer Statistics, 2016, and have been published early online in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.  Each year, the American Cancer Society estimates new cancer cases and deaths in the U.S. for the current year, as well as evaluate trends in cancer over the last few decades.   What the study reports is that even if there will be an approximate 1,685,210 new cancer cases and 595,690 cancer deaths in the United States in 2016, overall cancer incidence has remained stable in women and declined by about 3% in men.  Part of this drop can be attributed to current government guidelines causing a decrease in prostate cancer screening, which Dr. Samadi says is “an unfortunate set back in men’s health.”

Prostate cancer death rates have dropped about 50% from their highest point

The study also indicated that cancer death rates dropped by a rate of 1.8% per year in men and 1.4% per year in women. This is mostly due to declines in lung, breast, prostate, and colon cancers.  Prostate cancer death rates have dropped about 50% from their highest point, and we can thank improvements in early detection methods and more effective treatments for this decline.

Dr. Samadi says that, “Despite our efforts in early detection, prostate cancer remains the second leading cancer cause of death in men, killing approximately 27,500 men this year.” Tens of thousands of additional men suffer from the burden of painful metastatic prostate cancer.  Since the widespread adoption of PSA screening in the early 1990’s, however, there has been a 39% reduction in prostate cancer mortality rates.

While the majority of prostate cancer diagnoses occur after the age of 55, prostate cancer does get diagnosed in men much younger than that.  Current governmental guidelines may give a false sense of security in younger men who are quick to believe prostate cancer is an “old man’s disease”, but prostate cancer can strike at any age.  Prostate cancer does not discriminate, and early detection, through screening and the PSA (prostate specific antigen) blood test, is our best defense against this silent killer.

Patients newly diagnosed with prostate cancer can contact world renowned prostate cancer surgeon and urologic oncologist, Dr.David Samadi, for a phone consultation and to learn more about PSA screening. Call 212.365.5000 to set up your consultation.