SWHR Resources Encourage Awareness of Cancers Affecting Women and Knowing Your Personal Risk 

This month, the Biden Administration announced new actions within the Cancer Moonshot to reach its goal of reducing the cancer death rate in the United States by at least half by 2047. These actions include an additional $240 million in cancer funding for the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) and plans to create a “biomedical data fabric toolbox” for cancer data.  

These actions are aimed at improving outcomes for the millions of patients and families impacted by cancer, including the 1.9 million individuals who are expected to be diagnosed with cancer this year, according to the American Cancer Society’s (ACS) 2023 report.  

The outcomes for those impacted by cancer differ greatly based on cancer type, age, race, ethnicity, health history, and other factors. Here, we examine a few cancers with a significant impact on women: 

• Breast Cancer: Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death for women, and 31% of new cancers in women in 2023 will be breast cancer. Black women have a 40% higher breast cancer death rate compared to white women, despite having lower rates of incidence. 
• Cervical Cancer: Ninety percent of cervical cancers are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). Since 2012, rates have “dropped off steeply by 11% per year among women ages 20-24 years, likely reflecting the first signs of cancer prevention because of HPV vaccination,” ACS writes. The rate of cervical cancer is 65% higher in Black women than white women.   
• Lung Cancer: One in five of all cancer deaths is due to lung cancers. Small cell lung cancer, one of the two main types of lung cancer, is more common in women than men. An estimated 21% of new cancer deaths in women in 2023 will be from lung cancer. American Indian and Alaska Native women have the highest lung cancer mortality rate of any racial or ethnic group, which is associated with their high smoking prevalence. 
• Ovarian Cancer: Ovarian cancer causes more cancer deaths than any other gynecologic cancer. The ovarian cancer incidence rate declined by almost 3% per year from 2015 to 2019, which is likely due, in part, to increased oral contraceptive use in recent decades, ACS states.  

Lean more about women’s risk for colorectal, endometrial, skin and other cancers on the ACS website here.

Several of SWHR’s latest resources were developed to bring attention to cancers in women, with an emphasis on proper screenings and early diagnosis – two important tools to manage cancer outcomes:  

• The Value of Diagnostics within Women’s Health: Breast Cancer fact sheet offers some of the latest recommendations on breast screenings and mammograms for individuals based on risk factors like age, family history, genetics.  
• The #SWHRtalksHPV Video Series answers common questions about the HPV vaccine, a cancer-prevention vaccine that can protect against several cancers, including cervical, anal, oral, and penile cancers.  

• The Value of Diagnostics within Women’s Health: Lung Cancer fact sheet explains when clinicians might recommend yearly computerized tomography (CT) scans for certain individuals, considering factors, such as age and smoking history.  
• While there are no recommended screening guidelines for ovarian cancer, the Value of Diagnostics within Women’s Health: Ovarian Cancer fact sheet shares information on ovarian cancer risks and symptoms, so individuals can have a conversation with their doctors about their health status.  

All of these resources remind us that it’s never too early to start thinking about cancer risk and prevention. As we close out Ovarian Cancer, Leukemia and Lymphoma, Gynecologic Cancer, and Uterine Cancer Awareness Months in September and look toward Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Liver Cancer Awareness Month in October, SWHR encourages you to know your family history, check your cancer risks, and have a conversation with your provider about screening or early prevention opportunities to protect yourself against cancer.  

Do you have a cancer story to share? SWHR wants to hear from you! Share you story at swhr.org/shareyourstory.