American Cancer Society Study Finds Colorectal Cancer Tops Deaths Under 50

JAMA published a study finding colorectal cancer became the leading cause of cancer death in U.S. adults under 50, based on analysis of nearly 1.3 million deaths from 1990 through 2023.

Overall cancer mortality for people under 50 fell 44% from 1990 to 2023, but colorectal cancer deaths rose 1.1% annually from 2005 through 2023, making it the only leading cancer to increase, the study said.

Rebecca Siegel, senior scientific director of surveillance research at the American Cancer Society, said "It is absolutely an outlier" and urged increased awareness and screening for symptomatic young adults.

The analysis found nearly 1.3 million cancer deaths before age 50 from 1990 through 2023 and reported annual declines from 2014 through 2023 of 5.7% for lung cancer, 2.3% for leukemia and 1.4% for breast cancer, officials said.

Researchers are investigating causes including obesity, ultraprocessed diets, the gut microbiome and antibiotics, and they called for screening at age 45 and more study of tumor progression in younger patients, the report said.