The data show that America suffers more from cancer deaths per capita than Mexico, Ethiopia or even Iraq, with the country ranking 81st worldwide for disease deaths.
President Joe Biden announced on Monday more money for blood tests to help diagnose the disease early, as he aims to reduce the death toll to 300,000 a year by 2042. The amount to be spent was not disclosed.
But data compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO) showed that the United States lags behind many underdeveloped countries with 85.7 cancer deaths per 100,000 people per year, although this figure is on a downward trend.
Cancer rates in America are often attributed to the expensive healthcare system, and there is some delay in checking for potential warning signs for fear of costs.
However, many less developed countries generally have younger populations and lower life expectancies, which reduces the risk of the disease because it is more common in old age. They also do not have such a strong health infrastructure, which means many deaths go undiagnosed and unreported.
However, cancer death rates in the U.S. are lower than in many other Western countries, with government-funded healthcare – including France and Italy, as well as the United Kingdom. This may be related to a quarter of Europeans smoking compared to 14% of Americans and faster access to new treatments and fewer smokers.
This chart shows 15 of the 185 countries ranked by cancer death rates calculated by the World Health Organization. It shows that many countries, including Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Guatemala, have lower rates than the United States, but others trend higher.
Joe Biden said today that ending cancer “as we know it” is one of the reasons he ran for president while highlighting the “Cancer Moonshot” initiative in the glory of the Kennedy family.
WHO data was used by the London-based World Cancer Research Fund to rank 185 countries for cancer deaths for 2020.
They are given as an age-adjusted percentage to allow comparison between countries with different population sizes that take into account differences in average age between countries.
Saudi Arabia has the lowest cancer death rates in the world (50.9 per 100,000), while Mexico (62.6), Ethiopia (73.6) and Iraq (84.3) also fell below the US rate.
But on the other hand, European countries all have higher rates, including the government-funded healthcare system (99.6) and the United Kingdom (99.6), Italy (90.6) and France (107.5).
Cancer is the second most common cause of death in the United States, with approximately 600,000 deaths per year, and heart disease alone is leading with 696,000 deaths.
The American Cancer Society says lung cancer is the deadliest for both men and women, with about 120,000 deaths per year. This is followed by breast cancer – 61,000 deaths – and prostate cancer – 34,500.
After Biden lost his son, Beau, to brain cancer in 2015, it became an ongoing mission to fight the disease, prompting him to create the first moonlight cancer program.
Today, the president reiterated his support for the mission and pledged to cure cancer “absolutely and for all” and accelerate its initiative.
Caroline Kennedy repeatedly praised Biden in her keynote speech and compared him to her father, President John F Kennedy.
President Joe Biden greets Ambassador Caroline Kennedy before speaking about the moon strike against the cancer initiative at the John F. Kennedy Library
“Now, in our era, on the 60th anniversary of his ringing call, we face another turning point, and together we can choose to move forward with unity, hope and optimism.
“I believe we can initiate the same reluctance to procrastinate, the same national goal that will serve to organize and measure our best energy and ability to end cancer as we know it. And also cure cancer definitively.’
Biden was in Boston deliberately to repeat Kennedy’s famous 1962 speech, which was praised for its positive tone and effectiveness in drawing Americans to the president’s cause.
With him was Kennedy’s daughter, Caroline, who served as ambassador to Australia. He called her and her son Jack onto the stage after their comments so they could work the rope line together.
Commenting on today’s announcement, American Cancer Society president Lisa Lacasse said Biden’s commitment to changing the course of cancer is critical because we need a national commitment to implement policies that deliver far-reaching benefits.
“We have made great strides in how we prevent, detect, treat and survive cancer, but there is still a lot of work to be done to improve the lives of those affected by this disease.”
John F. Kennedy’s “Moonshot” speech launched the goal of sending a man to the moon
In his “Moonshot” speech on September 12, 1962, President John F. Kennedy described space as a new frontier.
As the Soviet Union beat America in the space race, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin made his comments when he circumnavigated the Earth and landed safely.
Kennedy used the speech to summarize his goal of landing a man on the moon before 1970. But he also used his comments to evoke America’s pioneering spirit, along with a sense of urgency and destiny.
He went to NASA’s Mission Control site in Houston, Texas, to inquire about the possibility of his target. He then spoke to nearly 40,000 people at Rice University’s Rice Stadium.
President John F. Kennedy in his Moonshot speech at Rice University
The middle part of the speech is best remembered and quoted:
We are sailing in this new sea because there is new knowledge to be gained and new rights to be conquered and these must be conquered and used for the advancement of all people. Because space science, like nuclear science and all technologies, does not have a consciousness of its own. Whether it is a positive or a negative force is up to man, and only if the United States takes a leadership position can we help decide whether this new ocean will be a sea of peace or a terrible new battleground. I am not saying that we should or will not be protected against the hostile use of space, just as we should guard against hostile use of land or sea, but I am saying that space can be explored and dominated without fire. without repeating the mistakes made by man to extend his command to this world of ours.
There is still no war in space, no prejudice, no national conflict. Dangers are enemies to all of us. Conquest deserves the best of all humanity and the possibility of peaceful cooperation may never come back. But why, some say, the moon? Why should we choose this as our goal? And they may be wondering, why are they climbing the highest mountain? Why did it fly over the Atlantic Ocean 35 years ago? Why does Rice play in Texas?
We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon… In this decade we choose to go to the moon and do other things, not because they are easy, but because they are difficult; for this purpose will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and abilities, for this challenge is the one and the other that we are ready to face, that we do not want to postpone and plan to win.
Kennedy has been praised for using the speech to highlight what is best in America and to provide a lively and optimistic view of the future.
John Kennedy’s goal of sending a man to the moon was achieved – posthumously – in July 1969 with the successful Apollo 11 mission; above, astronaut Edwin Aldrin walks on the lunar surface
Kennedy’s goal of sending a man to the moon was achieved – posthumously – in July 1969 with the successful Apollo 11 mission of the Apollo program.
Source: Daily Mail
Errol Villanueva is an author and lifestyle journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a passion for exploring the latest trends in fashion, food, travel, and wellness, Errol’s articles are a must-read for anyone interested in living a stylish and fulfilling life.
