There are continuing challenges in changing behaviors and risk factors in order to reduce suffering and death from cancer.

Since 1992, the American Cancer Society has published CPED as a resource to strengthen cancer prevention and early detection efforts at the local, state, and national levels. Below are highlights of the 2013 report.
Tobacco Use
- Cigarette smoking prevalence in US adults declined from 20.9% to 19.0% between 2005 and 2011, with significant declines in both men (23.9% to 21.6%) and women (18.1% to 16.5%) as well as in young adults, Hispanics, and Asians.
- Heavy smoking also declined significantly during that time, reflecting long-term historical trends toward lower cigarette consumption among smokers.
- Smoking among high school students has dropped from a high of 36.4% in 1997 to a new low of 18.1% in 2011.
- Apart from cigarettes, the most commonly used tobacco products among high school students in 2011 were cigars (13.1%) and smokeless tobacco (7.7%).
- The average state cigarette excise tax rate is $1.48, with wide variation between states ranging from 17 cents per pack in Missouri to $4.35 per pack in New York.
- Despite record high revenues from tobacco taxes and the Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) awards, states spent less on tobacco prevention (< 2% of tobacco-related revenue) during 2011-2012 than in any period since the MSA was reached in 1998.
- In part as a response to increasing smoke-free environments, the tobacco industry ramped up marketing expenditures on smokeless tobacco products nearly 120% between 2005 and 2008, potentially expanding the tobacco market.
- An estimated 18.4% of adolescents and 35.7% of adults are obese.
- Increasing rates of obesity observed since the early 1980s appear to have slowed in the past decade, particularly among women and girls.
- Obesity prevalence is higher in men than in women among whites, but substantially higher in women than in men among African Americans and Hispanics
- The percentage of US high school students who were obese in 2011 varied widely across states, from a low of 7.3% in Colorado to a high of 17% in Alabama.
- In 2011, obesity prevalence exceeded 20% in all states and was highest in Mississippi (35.0%) and lowest in Colorado (20.8%).
- Individuals who use indoor tanning booths during their teens and 20s increase their risk of melanoma by 75%.
- Thirty-three states have enacted legislation restricting minors' access to indoor tanning facilities.
HPV Vaccination for Cervical Cancer Prevention - The initiation of the HPV vaccination series among US females 13 to 17 years of age increased from 25.0% in 2007 to 53.0% in 2011, with 70.7% of those who initiated completing the entire three-dose series. Despite these improvements, HPV vaccine coverage among adolescent females lags behind other recommended vaccines. Advertisements
- Mammography use has been relatively stable since 2000. In 2010, 66.5% of women 40 years of age and older reported getting a mammogram in the past two years; women who lack health insurance have the lowest use of mammograms (31.5%).
- In 2010, 83.0% of adult women (21-65 years of age) had received a Pap test in the past three years. However, there is persistent underuse of the Pap test among women who are uninsured, recent immigrants, and those with low education.
- In 2010, 59.1% of adults 50 years of age or older reported use of either a fecal occult blood test (FOBT) or an endoscopy to screen for colorectal cancer within recommended time intervals. However, rates remain substantially lower among uninsured individuals (18.8%) and among those with 11 or fewer years of education (43.9%). To date, 28 states and the District of Columbia have passed legislation ensuring comprehensive coverage for the full range of tests.
Advertisements
Source-Eurekalert