Abstract / Summary
The Hispanic/Latino population is the second largest racial and ethnic group in the United States, accounting for 20% of the total population (68 million), plus approximately 3 million Hispanic Americans residing in Puerto Rico. Herein, the American Cancer Society reports cancer occurrence, risk factors, and screening for US Hispanic people using federally funded, high-quality, population-based cancer registry data and national vital statistics and survey data. In 2026, an estimated 229,900 Hispanic people will be diagnosed with cancer, and 54,200 will die from the disease in the continental United States and Hawaii. Cancer incidence during 1998-2022 rose in Hispanic women (from 345 to 385 per 100,000) and fell in Hispanic men (from 471 to 389 per 100,000), narrowing the male-to-female incidence rate ratio from a peak of 1.40 (95% CI, 1.38-1.42) in 2002 to 1.01 (95% CI, 1.00-1.02; p = .02) in 2022. This pattern is partly driven by declining incidence of lung and prostate cancers among men and increasing incidence of breast and uterine corpus cancers among women. Although temporal trends mirror the general population, the Hispanic cancer distribution is distinct, consistent with relatively lower prevalence of smoking, alcohol drinking, and screening and higher prevalence of obesity and cancer-causing infections. Compared with White people, Hispanic people have one half the incidence of lung and urinary bladder cancers and 24% lower breast cancer but double the rate of liver, stomach, and gallbladder cancers, 61%-65% higher acute lymphocytic leukemia, and 36% higher cervical cancer. The cancer burden in Puerto Rico is distinct, with lower rates of lung cancer but higher rates of cervical, prostate, and colorectal cancers compared with other US Hispanic populations. Residents in Puerto Rico also experience lasting health care system challenges from extreme weather events. Thus, prevention efforts should target the unique cancer profile of the Hispanic population, including infection prevention and control, healthy eating, physical activity, and routine screening, especially for cervical and colorectal cancer that are 11 percentage points lower than White people.