State of Lung Cancer in 20204
Introduction
About every two minutes, someone in the U.S. is diagnosed with lung cancer, and every day, lung cancer takes the lives
of 361 of our friends, neighbors and loved ones. But now there’s hope as more people in America than ever are surviving
lung cancer. While the disease remains the leading cause of cancer deaths, over the past five years, the survival rate has
increased by 26% nationally to 28.4%.
This year’s report also examines the lifesaving potential of lung cancer screening, which can detect the disease at an
earlier stage when it’s more curable, the importance of advancements in lung cancer research, which holds the promise
for better treatment options, and insurance coverage of comprehensive biomarker testing, which can help determine
what treatment options would be best for individuals with lung cancer and other diseases.
In March of 2021, the United States Preventive Services Task Force expanded its recommendation for screening to
include a larger age range and more current and former smokers. This dramatically increased the number of women and
Black individuals who are considered at high risk for lung cancer. Unfortunately, in 2022, only 16.0% of all those eligible
were screened.
For the fifth consecutive year, the “State of Lung Cancer” report explores the lung cancer burden among racial and
ethnic groups at the national and state levels. In addition to lower survival rates, people of color who are diagnosed with
lung cancer face worse outcomes compared to white individuals: they are less likely to be diagnosed early, less likely to
receive surgical treatment, and more likely to not receive any treatment.
A strategic imperative of the American Lung Association is to defeat lung cancer, and to do so, we use a variety of tactics
and work with diverse stakeholders to address the disease and its risk factors, including public policy efforts and public
health protections, awareness of lung cancer screening and more.
The “State of Lung Cancer” report provides a state-specific understanding of the burden of lung cancer and opportunities
to address this deadly disease.
The report also serves as both a guidepost and rallying call, providing policymakers, researchers, healthcare practitioners,
as well as people diagnosed with lung cancer, caregivers and others committed to ending lung cancer by identifying
where their state can best focus its resources to decrease the toll of lung cancer.
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