Cancer Deaths Keep Falling, But 2026 Will Bring More Than 2 Million New Cases

Cancer deaths in the U.S. continue to decline, thanks to reduced smoking rates, earlier detection, and better treatments. But the country is still on track to see more than 2.1 million new cancer cases and over 626,000 cancer deaths in 2026, according to the American Cancer Society's newly released annual report.

The organization credits significant advances in cancer treatment for the improvement in survival rates. "We've made more progress in the treatment of metastatic cancer in the last 20 years than we did in the history of mankind before then," said Dr. William Dahut, the American Cancer Society's Chief Scientific Officer.

Lung cancer remains the leading cause of cancer deaths, killing more people than colorectal and pancreatic cancers—the next two deadliest—combined. While survival rates for metastatic lung cancer have improved fivefold, they still sit at just 10%.

The report also highlights ongoing disparities in who gets cancer and who survives it. Alaska Natives and Native Americans have the highest cancer death rates, driven largely by limited access to care along with environmental and lifestyle factors. Black women are less likely to survive breast cancer and face worse outcomes for endometrial and uterine cancers, often receiving diagnoses at later stages. Rates of advanced prostate cancer continue to rise among men overall, with Black men facing higher rates of diagnosis and death from the disease.

The findings underscore that while treatment breakthroughs have changed the landscape, gaps in access and outcomes remain. "There's still a lot of work to be done," Dahut said.