The Decreasing Number of Deaths from Cancer

There is a report in the journal Cancer that shows that Americans are getting cancer less often, according to NPR. In the past few years, there has been a dramatic drop in cancer deaths. According to physicians, this is due to early detection, treatment, and earlier testing for cancer. However, not everybody has been acting proactively against cancer or benefiting from treatment and prevention. Because of cost, healthcare, or availability, many people still aren’t getting the help they need to find and treat cancer early. According to Dr. Norton, a physician in the Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, for every person getting mammograms or quitting smoking, there are people who do not go to the doctor’s and there are people who start smoking.
Of course, there are other reasons. If people live in poverty stricken areas, there is a high chance that there are fewer opportunities for good health care. Also, for poorer people, it is harder to find money to pay for cancer detection tests.

There are certain tests everybody should be able to get for health reasons. Early detection and treatment saves many lives each year. Perhaps if there were open clinics for routine testing for breast, colon, and prostate cancer, many lives would be saved.