Special Report

Lung Cancer Is the Deadliest Cancer in America

Egor Kulinich / Getty Images

This article was written with the assistance of A.I. technology, and has been edited and fact-checked by Colman Andrews.

Cancer is a disease that has been with us for a long time, and it is still a deadly threat. Each year, cancer kills more than 600,000 people in the United States, and remains the second leading cause of death in the nation after heart disease.

Lung cancer is the deadliest cancer in America. Between 1999 and 2019, it claimed the lives of more than 3.2 million people. From 2010 to 2018, only 23% of lung cancer patients were still alive five years after diagnosis.

There are many risk factors for lung cancer, including smoking, breathing of secondhand smoke, and exposure to certain chemicals and pollutants. People who have lung cancer often have no symptoms in the early stages of the disease. This can make it difficult to catch the disease early, when it is most treatable.

There has been significant progress in the treatment of lung cancer in recent years. However, it remains a deadly disease. It is important for people to be aware of the risks , and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that all adults get regular screenings for lung cancer.

Click here to see which cancers are the deadliest in America.

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