Liver Cancer Rates Are Increasing at a Time When Other Cancer Rates Are Dropping
More than 40,000 people a year are diagnosed with liver cancer in the United States, and the rate is rising. While cancer of the liver and bile ducts is the 13th most common type of cancer in the United States, it is the fifth leading cause of cancer death, according to the National Cancer Institute. Worldwide, it is the second leading cause of cancer death.
Men are more than twice as likely as women to develop liver cancer. It is most likely to occur in people over age 60. In the United States, liver cancer is most common among Asians and Pacific Islanders because the prevalence of hepatitis B is high in this group. Latinos and African Americans also have higher rates than white people.
