Race Gap for Colon Cancer Deaths Widens

Blacks are more likely than whites to be diagnosed with colon cancer, and to die from it. And the gap is getting wider, the American Cancer Society says. In the 1970s, death rates for the two groups were nearly equal. But new data show a much larger gap. In 2005, blacks had about 25 deaths from colon and rectal cancer per 100,000 people. The rate in whites was 17 per 100,000. One reason may be less screening for blacks. Tests can find colon cancer early and even remove growths before they become cancer. About 5 out of 10 whites get tested. Only 4 out of 10 blacks do. But Hispanics have even lower testing rates, and lower death rates as well. The Associated Press wrote about the new data December 15.