Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Jan 1;129(1):32-38.
doi: 10.1002/cncr.34503. Epub 2022 Oct 30.

Trends in breast cancer mortality by race/ethnicity, age, and US census region, United States─1999-2020

Taylor D Ellington  1   2 , S Jane Henley  1 , Reda J Wilson  1 , Jacqueline W Miller  1 , Manxia Wu  1 , Lisa C Richardson  1
Affiliations

Trends in breast cancer mortality by race/ethnicity, age, and US census region, United States─1999-2020

Taylor D Ellington et al. Cancer. .

Abstract

Background: Breast cancer remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among women in the United States. Previous analyses show that breast cancer incidence increased from 1999 to 2018. The purpose of this article is to examine trends in breast cancer mortality.

Methods: Analysis of 1999 to 2020 mortality data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, among women by race/ethnicity, age, and US Census region.

Results: It was found that overall breast cancer mortality is decreasing but varies by race/ethnicity, age group, and US Census region. The largest decrease in mortality was observed among non-Hispanic White women, women aged 45 to 64 years of age, and women living in the Northeast; whereas the smallest decrease in mortality was observed among non-Hispanic Asian or Pacific Islander women, women aged 65 years or older, and women living in the South.

Conclusion: This report provides national estimates of breast cancer mortality from 1999 to 2020 by race/ethnicity, age group, and US Census region. The decline in breast cancer mortality varies by demographic group. Disparities in breast cancer mortality have remained consistent over the past two decades. Using high-quality cancer surveillance data to estimate trends in breast cancer mortality may help health care professionals and public health prevention programs tailor screening and diagnostic interventions to address these disparities.

Keywords: breast cancer; breast cancer mortality; cancer disparities; cancer surveillance; epidemiology.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no potential conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Trends in female breast cancer mortalitya by race/ethnicityb, United Statesc ─ 1999–2020 Abbreviations: AI/AN = American Indians or Alaska Natives; A/PI = Asian or Pacific Islander; NH = non-Hispanic; AAPC = average annual percent change. a Per 100,000 women; overall rates were age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population. AAPC were calculated using joinpoint regression, which allowed different slopes for four periods; the year at which slopes changed could vary by race/ethnicity. b Mutually exclusive racial/ethnic groups are based on information about race/ethnicity that was collected separately and combined for this report. Race/ethnicity were grouped as non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native, non-Hispanic Asian or Pacific Islander, non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic White. Hispanic persons can be any race. c Cancer mortality data cover 100% of the population. * AAPC is significantly different from zero at the alpha = 0.05 level. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 1999–2020 on CDC WONDER Online Database, released in 2021. Data are from the Multiple Cause of Death Files, 1999–2020, as compiled from data provided by the 57 vital statistics jurisdictions through the Vital Statistics Cooperative Program. Accessed at http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html on Jan 19, 2022 2:57:19 PM
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Trends in female breast cancer mortalitya by age group, United Statesb─ 1999–2020 a Per 100,000 women; overall rates were age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population. APC were calculated using joinpoint regression, which allowed different slopes for four periods; the year at which slopes changed could vary by age. b Cancer mortality data cover 100% of the population. * APC is significantly different from zero at the alpha = 0.05 level. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 1999–2020 on CDC WONDER Online Database, released in 2021. Data are from the Multiple Cause of Death Files, 1999–2020, as compiled from data provided by the 57 vital statistics jurisdictions through the Vital Statistics Cooperative Program. Accessed at http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html on Jan 19, 2022 2:57:19 PM
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Trends in female breast cancer mortalitya by U.S. census region, United Statesb─ 1999–2020 a Per 100,000 women; overall rates were age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population. AAPC and APC were calculated using joinpoint regression, which allowed different slopes for four periods. b Cancer mortality data cover 100% of the population. * APC is significantly different from zero at the alpha = 0.05 level. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 1999–2020 on CDC WONDER Online Database, released in 2021. Data are from the Multiple Cause of Death Files, 1999–2020, as compiled from data provided by the 57 vital statistics jurisdictions through the Vital Statistics Cooperative Program. Accessed at http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html on Jan 19, 2022 2:57:19 PM
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. U.S. Cancer Statistics Working Group. U.S. Cancer Statistics Data Visualizations Tool, based on 2020 submission data (1999–2018): U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Cancer Institute; www.cdc.gov/cancer/dataviz, released in June 2021
    1. Farhad Islami, MD PhD, Ward Elizabeth M, PhD, Sung Hyuna, PhD, Cronin Kathleen A, PhD, Tangka Florence K L, PhD, Sherman Recinda L, PhD, Zhao Jingxuan, MPH, Anderson Robert N, PhD, Henley S Jane, MSPH, Yabroff K Robin, PhD, Jemal Ahmedin, DVM, PhD, Benard Vicki B, PhD, Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, Part 1: National Cancer Statistics, JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 2021;, djab131, 10.1093/jnci/djab131 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. DeSantis CE, Ma J, Goding Sauer A, Newman LA, Jemal A. Breast cancer statistics, 2017, racial disparity in mortality by state. CA Cancer J Clin. 2017. Nov;67(6):439–448. doi: 10.3322/caac.21412. Epub 2017 Oct 3. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Noone AM, Howlader N, Krapcho M, et al. SEER Cancer Statistics Review, 1975–2015. Bethesda, MD: National Cancer Institute; 201
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Vital signs: racial disparities in breast cancer severity--United States, 2005–2009. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2012. Nov 16;61(45):922–6. - PubMed