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Article: Cancer a Bigger Killer Than Heart Disease
- Article from:
- AP Online
- Article date:
- January 19, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Associated Press. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Associated Press. (Hide copyright information)
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MARILYNN MARCHIONE, AP Medical Writer
AP Online
01-19-2005
For the first time, cancer has surpassed heart disease as the top killer of Americans under 85, health officials said Wednesday. The good news is that deaths from both are falling, but improvement has been more dramatic for heart disease.
"It's dropping fast enough that another disease is eclipsing it," said Dr. Walter Tsu, president of the American Public Health Association.
The single biggest reason: fewer smokers.
The news is contained in the American Cancer Society's annual statistical report, released Wednesday. In 2002, the most recent year for which information is available, 476,009 Americans under 85 died of cancer compared ...