Lance's Corner

NIH Issues National Cancer Annual Report

Apr 21, 2025

Per the notice below, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has issued its annual report on cancer.

Annual Report to the Nation: Cancer deaths continue to decline

Overall death rates from cancer declined steadily among both men and women from 2001 through 2022.

From 2001 through 2022 overall cancer death rates declined for women, men, and children (National Cancer Institute).

What

Overall death rates from cancer declined steadily among both men and women from 2001 through 2022, even during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the 2024 Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer.  Among men, overall cancer incidence, measured as the rate of new cancer diagnoses, decreased from 2001 through 2013 and then stabilized through 2021.  Among women, overall cancer incidence increased slightly every year from 2003 through 2021, with the exception of 2020.  The report appeared April 21, 2025, in Cancer.

Progress in reducing cancer deaths overall is largely the result of declines in both incidence and death rates for lung cancer and several other smoking-related cancers, the researchers noted.  New diagnoses and deaths from lung cancer, for example, have declined in both men and women over the past 20 years.  Meanwhile, the incidence of cancers associated with obesity has been rising.  These include female breast, uterus, colon and rectum, pancreas, kidney, and liver cancers.

The report also shows that new diagnoses of breast cancer gradually increased over the study period, but the overall breast cancer death rate decreased.  Cancer death rates in children declined steadily over the study period; those for adolescents and young adults also declined until recently, when the decline slowed and stabilized.  From 2018 to 2022, cancer deaths decreased for each major racial and ethnic population group.  From 2017 to 2021 (excluding 2020), cancer incidence was stable among men in each major racial and ethnic population group but increased among women in each major racial and ethnic population group.  During the same time period, among men, incidence was highest in non-Hispanic Black men, whereas among women, incidence was highest in American Indian and Alaska Native women.

The report also included an analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on observed cancer incidence in individual states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico for the first two years of the pandemic.  Cancer incidence declined sharply in 2020, likely due to pandemic-related disruptions in health care, but returned to pre-pandemic levels by 2021.  The magnitude of the 2020 decline was similar across states, despite variations in COVID-19 policy restrictions.  The researchers noted that these findings underscore the importance of providing access to health care, even during public health emergencies, to ensure the timely diagnosis of cancer.

The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer is a collaborative effort among the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); the American Cancer Society (ACS); and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACCR).  The report provides annual updates on cancer trends in the United States.

The report is based on cancer incidence data from population-based cancer registries, funded by CDC and NCI and compiled by NAACCR, and on cancer death data from the National Center for Health Statistics’ National Vital Statistics System.

For more about the report, see: https://seer.cancer.gov/report_to_nation/.

Who

  • NAACCR: Recinda L. Sherman, Ph.D., M.P.H.
  • ACS: Ahmedin Jemal, D.V.M., Ph.D.
  • CDC: Jane Henley, M.S.P.H., and Lisa C. Richardson, M.D., M.P.H.
  • NIH: Serban Negoita, M.D., Dr.P.H., and Kathleen A. Cronin, Ph.D., M.P.H.

The Study

“Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer, Featuring State-Level Statistics after the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic” appears April 21, 2025, in Cancer.

About the National Cancer Institute (NCI): NCI leads the National Cancer Program and NIH’s efforts to dramatically reduce the prevalence of cancer and improve the lives of cancer patients and their families, through research into prevention and cancer biology, the development of new interventions, and the training and mentoring of new researchers.  For more information about cancer, please visit the NCI website at cancer.gov or call NCI’s contact center, the Cancer Information Service, at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).

About the American Cancer Society (ACS): The American Cancer Society is a global grassroots force of 1.5 million volunteers dedicated to saving lives, celebrating lives, and leading the fight for a world without cancer.  For more than 100 years, the American Cancer Society has been the preeminent cancer-fighting organization in the United States through research, education, advocacy, and patient services.  We have helped lead the evolution in the way the world prevents, detects, treats, and thinks about cancer.  For more information go to: www.cancer.org.

About the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Whether diseases start at home or abroad, are curable or preventable, chronic or acute, or from human activity or deliberate attack, CDC’s world-leading experts protect lives and livelihoods, national security, and the U.S. economy by providing timely, commonsense information, and rapidly identifying and responding to diseases, including outbreaks and illnesses.  CDC drives science, public health research, and data innovation in communities across the country by investing in local initiatives to protect everyone’s health.  For more information, see: www.cdc.gov.

About the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACCR): The North American Association of Central Cancer Registries, Inc., is a professional organization that develops and promotes uniform data standards for cancer registration; provides education and training; certifies population-based registries; aggregates and publishes data from central cancer registries; and promotes the use of cancer surveillance data and systems for cancer control and epidemiologic research, public health programs, and patient care to reduce the burden of cancer in North America.  For more, see: naaccr.org.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases.  For more information about NIH and its programs, visit: www.nih.gov.

USDOL Issues Comprehensive Employer Guidance on Long COVID

The United States Department of Labor (USDOL) has issued a comprehensive set of resources that can be accessed below for employers on dealing with Long COVID.

Supporting Employees with Long COVID: A Guide for Employers

The “Supporting Employees with Long COVID” guide from the USDOL-funded Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) and Job Accommodation Network (JAN) addresses the basics of Long COVID, including its intersection with mental health, and common workplace supports for different symptoms.  It also explores employers’ responsibilities to provide reasonable accommodations and answers frequently asked questions about Long COVID and employment, including inquiries related to telework and leave.

Download the guide

Accommodation and Compliance: Long COVID

The Long COVID Accommodation and Compliance webpage from the USDOL-funded Job Accommodation Network (JAN) helps employers and employees understand strategies for supporting workers with Long COVID.  Topics include Long COVID in the context of disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), specific accommodation ideas based on limitations or work-related functions, common situations and solutions, and questions to consider when identifying effective accommodations for employees with Long COVID.  Find this and other Long COVID resources from JAN, below:

Long COVID, Disability and Underserved Communities: Recommendations for Employers

The research-to-practice brief “Long COVID, Disability and Underserved Communities” synthesizes an extensive review of documents, literature and data sources, conducted by the USDOL-funded Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) on the impact of Long COVID on employment, with a focus on demographic differences.  It also outlines recommended actions organizations can take to create a supportive and inclusive workplace culture for people with Long COVID, especially those with disabilities who belong to other historically underserved groups.

Read the brief

Long COVID and Disability Accommodations in the Workplace

The policy brief “Long COVID and Disability Accommodations in the Workplace” explores Long COVID’s impact on the workforce and provides examples of policy actions different states are taking to help affected people remain at work or return when ready.  It was developed by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) as part of its involvement in USDOL’s State Exchange on Employment and Disability (SEED) initiative.

Download the policy brief

Understanding and Addressing the Workplace Challenges Related to Long COVID

The report “Understanding and Addressing the Workplace Challenges Related to Long COVID” summarizes key themes and takeaways from an ePolicyWorks national online dialogue through which members of the public were invited to share their experiences and insights regarding workplace challenges posed by Long COVID.  The dialogue took place during summer 2022 and was hosted by USDOL and its agencies in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Surgeon General.

Download the report

Working with Long COVID

The USDOL-published “Working with Long COVID” fact sheet shares strategies for supporting workers with Long COVID, including accommodations for common symptoms and resources for further guidance and assistance with specific situations.

Download the fact sheet

COVID-19: Long-Term Symptoms

This USDOL motion graphic informs workers with Long COVID that they may be entitled to temporary or long-term supports to help them stay on the job or return to work when ready, and shares where they can find related assistance.

Watch the motion graphic

A Personal Story of Long COVID and Disability Disclosure

In the podcast “A Personal Story of Long COVID and Disability Disclosure,” Pam Bingham, senior program manager for Intuit’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Tech team, shares her personal experience of navigating Long COVID symptoms at work.  The segment was produced by the USDOL-funded Partnership on Employment and Accessible Technology (PEAT) as part of its ongoing “Future of Work” podcast series.

Listen to the podcast

HHS OIG Issues Annual Report on State MFCUs

Per the notice below, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued its annual report on the performance of state Medicaid Fraud Control Units (MFCUs).

Medicaid Fraud Control Units Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report (OEI-09-24-00200) 

Medicaid Fraud Control Units (MFCUs) investigate and prosecute Medicaid provider fraud and patient abuse or neglect. OIG is the Federal agency that oversees and annually approves federal funding for MFCUs through a recertification process. This new report analyzed the statistical data on annual case outcomes—such as convictions, civil settlements and judgments, and recoveries—that the 53 MFCUs submitted for Fiscal Year 2023.  New York data is as follows:

Outcomes

  • Investigations1 - 556
  • Indicted/Charged - 9
  • Convictions - 8
  • Civil Settlements/Judgments - 28
  • Recoveries2 - $73,204,518

Resources

  • MFCU Expenditures3 - $55,964,293
  • Staff on Board4 - 257

1Investigations are defined as the total number of open investigations at the end of the fiscal year.

2Recoveries are defined as the amount of money that defendants are required to pay as a result of a settlement, judgment, or prefiling settlement in criminal and civil cases and may not reflect actual collections.  Recoveries may involve cases that include participation by other Federal and State agencies.

3MFCU and Medicaid Expenditures include both State and Federal expenditures.

4Staff on Board is defined as the total number of staff employed by the Unit at the end of the fiscal year.

Read the Full Report

View the Statistical Chart

Engage with the Interactive Map

GAO Issues Report on Medicaid Managed Care Service Denials and Appeal Outcomes

The United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a report on federal use of state data on Medicaid managed care service denials and appeal outcomes.  GAO found that federal oversight is limited because it doesn't require states to report on Medicaid managed care service denials or appeal outcomes and there has not been much progress on plans to analyze and make the data publicly available.  To read the GAO report on federal use of state data on Medicaid managed care service denials and appeal outcomes, use the first link below.  To read GAO highlights of the report on federal use of state data on Medicaid managed care service denials and appeal outcomes, use the second link below.
https://www.gao.gov/assets/d24106627.pdf  (GAO report on federal use of state data on Medicaid managed care service denials and appeal outcomes)
https://www.gao.gov/assets/d24106627_high.pdf  (GAO highlights on federal use of state data on Medicaid managed care service denials and appeal outcomes)

CMS Issues Latest Medicare Regulatory Activities Update

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued its latest update on its regulatory activities in the Medicare program.  While dentistry is only minimally connected to the Medicare program, Medicare drives the majority of health care policies and insurance reimbursement policies throughout the country.  Therefore, it always pays to keep a close eye on what CMS is doing in Medicare.  To read the latest CMS update on its regulatory activities in Medicare, use the link below.
https://www.cms.gov/training-education/medicare-learning-network/newsletter/2024-03-14-mlnc