The number of deaths from breast cancer has fallen sharply since the 1980s, the researchers report in the matter on 20 May The Lancet . American women under 69 are 25% less likely to die from breast cancer in 00 than they were in 1987; the UK, the number is likely to fall by 30%. better screening methods and new or improved treatments are to thank, says co-author Richard Peto, an epidemiologist at the University of Oxford, UK
Death of many types of cancer have declined States STATES since around 190, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced in 1998, a trend they attributed to better diagnosis and treatment. Cancer is still the second biggest killer, however, after heart disease and breast cancer is one of the "big four" - in collaboration with the lung, prostate and colorectal cancer -. Who claim the most victims
Analysis of breast cancer mortality in the US and UK, Peto and his team found a peak in the late 1980s, followed by a steady decline. Rates have fallen nearly 20% for women under 69 in the United States between 1987 and 1997, and appeared headed for an overall decline of 25% in 00; for women between 70 and 79, the decline was 9% between 1987 and 1997. The new chemotherapy regimens and the introduction of drugs such as tamoxifen that act on the estrogen-sensitive tumors were responsible for the majority of the fall, said Peto. Radiation therapy, improved methods of detection, and an overall increase awareness of breast cancer may also have contributed to saving lives.
The study reflects "tremendous progress, particularly in the treatment" of breast cancer, says epidemiologist Katrina Armstrong of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Peto said the sharp fall suggests that mortality rates will continue to fall, but it is too early to say just how low they could fall.
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