According to a new study of worldwide data from the World Health Organization, researchers led by Cecile Pizot from the International Research institute in Lyon, France, found that in 39 of the 47 countries studied, breast cancer death rates have fallen.
In the United States alone, mortality dropped by 42 percent — 22 deaths per 100,000 women in 1987-1989 to 14 deaths per 100,000 women in 2011-2013. It’s important to note that the death rate dropped more dramatically for women under the age of 50 by 50 percent. Still, women between 50 and 69 cut their losses by 44 percent; while women 70 or older saw a 31 percent decline.
Latin America on the other hand, returned mixed findings. For example, Brazil and Colombia saw rates increase in women of all ages, while in Argentina and Chile, witnessed a reduced rate in all women.
In spite of this, South Korea delivered the largest rise in breast cancer deaths, with an 83 percent increase bringing their death rate to 5.3 per 100,000 women.
“Comparing mortality trends between countries helps identify which healthcare systems have been the most efficient at reducing breast cancer mortality,” explained Pizot, of the International Prevention Research Institute in Lyon, France, in a statement.
The report was presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium of the American Association for Cancer Research.
However, it’s unclear whether screening, treatments, or a combination of both, are responsible for the decline. Interesting still, the study revealed…
…that several cases involving neighboring nations with comparable levels of wealth had similar breast cancer death rates even though some have had access to mammography screening since the 1980s while others only introduced it in 2005 or later.
As for the big picture, Pizot added, “This finding underlines the difficulty of isolating a single, common factor that would have a major influence on mortality trends.”
“Differences in health care systems and patient management could explain discrepancies in mortality reduction between similar countries,” the statement went on. “However, there is at present little data comparing the management of breast cancer patients across countries.”
For more information on Pizot’s research or general information about breast cancer, visit The U.S. National Cancer Institute here.
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