Key Statistics for Cervical Cancer

 

The American Cancer Society's estimates for cervical cancer in the United States for 2018 are:

• About 13,240 new cases of invasive cervical cancer will be diagnosed.

• About 4,170 women will die from cervical cancer.

Cervical pre-cancers are diagnosed far more often than invasive cervical cancer.

Cervical cancer was once one of the most common causes of cancer death for American women.  The cervical cancer death rate dropped significantly with the increased use of the Pap test.              (This screening procedure can find changes in the cervix before cancer develops. It can also find cervical cancer early − when it's small and easier to cure.) But it has not changed much over the last 15 years.

Cervical cancer tends to occur in midlife and is most frequently diagnosed in women between the ages of 35 and 44. It rarely develops in women younger than 20. Many older women do not realize that the risk of developing cervical cancer is still present as they age. More than 15% of cases of cervical cancer are found in women over 65 . However, these cancers rarely occur in women who have been getting regular tests to screen for cervical cancer before they were 65. See Can cervical cancer be prevented? and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Early Detection for more information about tests used to screen for cervical cancer.

In the United States, Hispanic women are most likely to get cervical cancer, followed by African-Americans, Asians and Pacific Islanders, and whites. American Indians and Alaskan natives have the lowest risk of cervical cancer in this country.

Visit the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Statistics Center for more key statistics.