Causes of death
Cancer deaths in the US
Cancer killed 623,191 people in the United States in 2025, making it the #2 cause of death. Adjusted for the country's aging population, the death rate is 140.2 per 100,000, down 30% from 200.8 in 1999.
Cancer deaths per year, 1999 to 2025
Data table
| Year | Deaths | Crude rate per 100,000 | Age-adjusted rate per 100,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 549,838 | 197.046 | 200.768 |
| 2000 | 553,091 | 196.534 | 199.633 |
| 2001 | 553,768 | 194.326 | 196.452 |
| 2002 | 557,271 | 193.749 | 194.336 |
| 2003 | 556,902 | 191.964 | 190.854 |
| 2004 | 553,888 | 189.166 | 186.786 |
| 2005 | 559,312 | 189.266 | 185.091 |
| 2006 | 559,888 | 187.643 | 181.782 |
| 2007 | 562,875 | 186.858 | 179.262 |
| 2008 | 565,469 | 185.952 | 176.365 |
| 2009 | 567,628 | 185.033 | 173.528 |
| 2010 | 574,743 | 186.154 | 172.795 |
| 2011 | 576,691 | 185.079 | 168.965 |
| 2012 | 582,623 | 185.6 | 166.484 |
| 2013 | 584,881 | 185.013 | 163.227 |
| 2014 | 591,700 | 185.569 | 161.223 |
| 2015 | 595,930 | 185.406 | 158.523 |
| 2016 | 598,038 | 185.078 | 155.761 |
| 2017 | 599,108 | 183.934 | 152.492 |
| 2018 | 599,274 | 183.17 | 149.106 |
| 2019 | 599,601 | 182.672 | 146.154 |
| 2020 | 602,350 | 182.816 | 144.126 |
| 2021 | 605,213 | 182.351 | 146.553 |
| 2022 | 608,371 | 182.536 | 142.29 |
| 2023 | 613,352 | 183.137 | 141.758 |
| 2024 | 619,876 | 182.257 | 139.447 |
| 2025 | 623,191 | 183.232 | 140.161 |
It has been the #2 cause of death in every year since 1999.
What cancer means here
Cancer is not one disease but dozens, and this page counts them all together. Lung cancer kills the most people, followed by colorectal and pancreatic cancer, with breast cancer and prostate cancer leading among women and men. The number of deaths keeps rising because the population is growing and aging, even though the age-adjusted death rate has fallen for decades, helped by less smoking, screening and better treatment.
CDC category: Malignant neoplasms (C00-C97)
What stands out in the 2025 data
- It accounted for 20% of all US deaths in 2025, about 1 in 5.
- Deaths from it are at the highest level in the data, which starts in 1999.
- 47% of the people who died of it were 75 or older.
- Men were 53% of the deaths, and their age-adjusted death rate was 1.3 times the rate for women.
Who dies of cancer
| Age | Deaths | Per 100,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1 | 52 | 1.4 |
| 1 to 4 | 238 | 1.6 |
| 5 to 14 | 803 | 2 |
| 15 to 24 | 1,388 | 3.1 |
| 25 to 34 | 3,498 | 7.5 |
| 35 to 44 | 11,654 | 25.6 |
| 45 to 54 | 31,814 | 78 |
| 55 to 64 | 94,694 | 227.3 |
| 65 to 74 | 183,087 | 516.5 |
| 75 to 84 | 188,377 | 976.1 |
| 85 and over | 107,584 | 1671.8 |
| Sex | Deaths | Age-adjusted rate |
|---|---|---|
| Women | 295,174 | 122.5 |
| Men | 328,017 | 163.6 |
Common questions
How many people die of cancer in the US each year?
Cancer caused 623,191 deaths in the United States in 2025 (CDC provisional data), compared with 549,838 in 1999.
Is the cancer death rate going up or down?
The age-adjusted death rate for cancer was 140.2 per 100,000 in 2025, down 30% from 200.8 in 1999. Age adjustment removes the effect of the population getting older, so it shows whether the risk per person changed, not just the raw count.
Where does cancer rank among causes of death?
It has been the #2 cause of death in every year since 1999. The top causes in 2025 were heart disease, cancer and accidents.
Who dies of cancer?
The most deaths were in people aged 75 to 84 (188,377 in 2025), and the highest death rate was in those aged 85 and over. 328,017 men and 295,174 women died of it.
Where does this data come from?
CDC WONDER, the National Center for Health Statistics death certificate data, using the NCHS list of 113 selected causes. Counts for 2025 are provisional and can be revised slightly upward.
Keep reading
- Benign & other tumors · 16,437 deaths in 2025, #18
- Heart disease · 695,898 deaths in 2025, #1
- Chronic lung disease · 148,561 deaths in 2025, #5
Source: CDC WONDER, Underlying Cause of Death, NCHS 113 selected causes. 2025 counts are provisional. Explore more on the Causes of Death page, or see what kills people your age.