• Lung cancer death rates in the U.S. dropped by 5.2 percent per year for men and 4.3 percent for women between 2014 and 2018, according to a new report.
• Total out-of-pocket costs for lung cancer care in the U.S. totaled around $1.35 billion in 2019, researchers found.
• The decline in lung cancer cases and mortality rates represents progress, according to experts, but high out-of-pocket costs remain a barrier to treatment for some.

Mortality rates related to lung cancer are on the decline in the United States, as are new cases of the condition, according to the recently released Annual Report to the Nation 2021: Overall Cancer Statistics. Among common cancers, death rates associated with lung cancer and melanoma have decreased the most.

“The declines in lung cancer and melanoma death rates are the result of progress across the entire cancer continuum — from reduced smoking rates to prevent cancer to discoveries such as targeted drug therapies and immune checkpoint inhibitors,” said Karen E. Knudsen, CEO of the American Cancer Society (ACS), in a news release.

Researchers also found that national out-of-pocket costs for lung cancer treatments in 2019 totaled around $1.35 billion, the fourth highest among cancer types. All told, Americans spent more than $21 billion out of pocket on cancer care.

The report, released in July, was compiled by experts from the ACS, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries, and the National Cancer Institute.

Less Smoking, Better Treatments Drive Lung Cancer’s Decline

The report calculated recent cancer death rates using data from 2014 through 2018. The data included people from every state in the U.S. and the District of Columbia.

Overall, part one of the 2021 annual report showed that cancer death rates dropped 2.2 percent per year for men and 1.7 percent per year for women. Between 2014 and 2018, the rate of lung cancer deaths decreased even more: Among men, lung cancer deaths declined an average of 5.2 percent per year. Among women, it dropped an average of 4.3 percent per year.

The report also showcased a decrease in the lung cancer incidence rate (how often people are diagnosed with new cases of lung cancer). People in the U.S. develop lung cancer at lower rates than they used to: Between 2013 and 2017, the lung cancer incidence rate decreased 2.5 percent per year for men and 1.1 percent per year for women.

The authors attribute the decline in lung cancer cases and deaths to advances in treatment as well as the nationwide drop in tobacco smoking. However, lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer death among Americans.

U.S. Out-of-Pocket Costs for Cancer Treatments Exceed $21B

Part two of the report explored the economic burden of cancer care for people with the condition. The report found that, in 2019, out-of-pocket costs for cancer care in the U.S. totaled more than $21 billion. “National out-of-pocket costs were highest for breast ($3.14 billion), prostate ($2.26 billion), colorectal ($1.46 billion), and lung ($1.35 billion) cancers, reflecting the higher prevalence of these cancers,” according to the report.

“In the modern era of cancer research, we have to think about treatment costs and how they impact our patients. As exciting and promising as cancer research is, we are keenly aware of the issue of financial toxicity for these patients. Therapies that are highly effective are no doubt good news, but if they are unaffordable, it is not the total kind of progress we would like to see,” said Dr. Norman Sharpless, director of the National Cancer Institute, in a news release. “Finding ways to ensure that not just some, but all patients get access to therapies that are beneficial to them is an important goal we must continue to strive for in the cancer community.”