Clinical Cancer Advances 2019: ASCO’s Annual Report on Progress Against Cancer highlights the most important clinical research advances of the past year and identifies priority areas where ASCO believes research efforts should be focused moving forward.
Since 1992, there have been nearly 25 consecutive years of decline in overall incidence and mortality rates for all types of cancer. In addition, the number of people living 5 years or more after a cancer diagnosis is projected to increase 31% by 2026, representing an increase of more than four million survivors in less than a decade. Cancer research, including the advances in this report, will help make progress possible.
This year, ASCO names Progress in Treating Rare Cancers as the Advance of the Year. In the United States, rare cancers account for approximately 20% of all cancers diagnosed each year, and incidence rates vary worldwide. Progress has historically lagged behind the achievements made in more common cancers; however, five major studies this past year offer significant steps forward, making this a notable year for advances in rare cancers:
