Cancer Deaths in the Far West Region

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in America, accounting for more than 599,000 deaths in 2019, or 21% of all deaths in the U.S. that year.  With advances in medical know how, the cancer death rate has dropped modestly over the past twenty years, from 197.0 deaths per 100,000 population in 1999 to 182.7 deaths per 100,000 population in 2019.  The national trend in cancer deaths is also seen in the six-state Far West region of the country.  Already a region with a cancer death rate below the national average, the cancer death rate in the Far West declined from 165.0 deaths per 100,000 population in 1999 to 158.2 deaths per 100,000 population in 2019.  A deeper examination of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, reveals that the favorable trend in cancer deaths in the Far West region of the country has not been a universal experience, as both Alaska and Hawaii have seen their cancer death rates worsen over the past twenty years:

Cancer Deaths in the Far West Region

Area/Deaths	1999	2009	2019
AK	633	895	1,021
CA	53,067	55,991	59,512
HI	1,916	2,244	2,500
NV	3,556	4,461	5,434
OR	6,905	7,487	8,080
WA	10,653	11,922	12,960
Region	76,730	83,000	89,507
U.S.	549,838	567,628	599,601
Area/Death Rate*	1999	2009	2019
AK	101.3	128.1	139.6
CA	158.4	151.5	150.6
HI	158.3	166.6	176.6
NV	183.8	166.2	176.4
OR	203.5	196.6	191.6
WA	182.3	178.8	170.2
Region	165.0	159.1	158.2
U.S.	197.0	185.0	182.7

(*) number of cancer deaths per 100,000 population

Source: CDC Wonder. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Underlying Cause of Death 1999-2019 on CDC WONDER Online Database, released in 2020. Data are from the Multiple Cause of Death Files, 1999-2019, as compiled from data provided by the 57 vital statistics jurisdictions through the Vital Statistics Cooperative Program. Accessed on June 12, 2021