The Medical Minute: Report Sparks Discussion About Reducing Cancer Mortality

The National Center for Health Statistics recently released a report on disparities in cancer mortality that provides researchers and health care organizations across the country with the information to spur improvement in local prevention efforts. The report – which notes that cancer death rates fell by 20 percent over the past 35 years – also points out that death rates from specific kinds of cancer are on the rise, and that people in certain geographic areas or demographic categories are more at risk than others.