Gastrointestinal cancers are expected to double globally by 2050, driven largely by pancreatic cancer diagnosis and colorectal cancer deaths, CRC is also showing up more frequently in younger populations, adding to the strain.
Adults younger than 65 now account for 45% of all newly diagnosed colorectal cancer cases in the U.S., up from 27% in 1995, according to the American Cancer Society’s “Colorectal Cancer Statistics, 2026” report published March 2 in CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.
In a study published in JAMA April 15, researchers examined trends in CRC mortality rates among individuals aged 26 to 49 years by educational attainment as a marker of socioeconomic status.
Researchers utilized nationwide CRC mortality data for more than 101,000 individuals within the 5-year age group from Jan. 1, 2994 through Dec. 31, 2023 via the National Center for Health Statistics and population estimates for the corresponding categories from the NCHS and the U.S. Census Bureau.
Here are three takeaways from the report:
1. Overall, the CRC mortality rate rose from about 3 per 100,000 to about 4 per 100,000 in the age group over the study period.
2. For those with a high school-level education, the rate rose from 4 to 5.2 per 100,000, while the rate did not change from 2.7 per 100,000 for those with at least a bachelor’s degree.
3. The number of deaths for adults younger than 50 was around 7% of the total, or about 3,900 individuals.
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