Cancer prevention, screening averted several million more deaths than treatment over 45 years

Cancer prevention, screening averted several million more deaths than treatment over 45 years
JAMA; Samantha Anderer; 1/25
In the US, cancer prevention and screening have saved more lives from 5 types of cancer combined than treatment advances over the past 45 years, according to a modeling study published in JAMA Oncology. An estimated 5.9 million breast, cervical, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancer deaths were avoided from 1975 to 2020 due to prevention, screening, and treatment efforts, but prevention and screening alone were responsible for averting about 4.8 million—4 out of 5—of those deaths. Still, the authors acknowledged that in all cancer types studied, less than half of total cancer deaths were averted, and they recommended increased investment in prevention and screening strategies.