MAHONING VALLEY Cancer society gives area data

Trumbull and Columbiana county cancer rates are higher than state averages.
By WILLIAM K. ALCORN
VINDICATOR HEALTH WRITER
CANFIELD -- Mahoning County's number of new cancer cases from 1997 to 2000 is slightly lower than the state and national averages.
Cancer rates in Trumbull and Columbiana counties, however, are higher than the state averages for the same period and national averages from 1996 to 2000, says the "Ohio Cancer Facts & amp; Figures 2003," released todayby the American Cancer Society.
The 2003 publication was prepared by ACS along with the Ohio Department of Health and the Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, both at Ohio State University.
In Mahoning County, there were 471.1 new cancer cases per 100,000 people, compared with the state and national averages of 471.9 and 472.3 per 100,000. Also, the average annual number of cancer deaths in Mahoning County, 213.8 per 100,000 people, is lower than the state average of 215.9, but higher than the national average of 202.3 per 100,000.
Though Trumbull County's average number of new cancer cases, 481 per 100,000, is higher than the state and national averages, its death rate, 215.5, is slightly lower than Ohio's average.
Likewise, Columbiana County, with new cancer cases of 483.8 per 100,000, is higher than the state and national averages. Its cancer death rate, at 214.3 per 100,000, also is lower than the state average.
Noteworthy statistics
There are some statistics that jump out for the tri-county area, said Al Stabilito, communications and advocacy director for the Eastern Ohio ACS.
"Lung and colon and rectal cancer cases are higher in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties compared to the national average. Yet, the incidence of prostate and breast cancers in the three counties is considerably lower than the national average," Stabilito said.
The statistics help the ACS know where to place its emphasis in raising awareness with community education and screening for early detection, he said.
The cancer society says about 30 percent of cancer deaths are tobacco-related. Consequently, with Ohio having the fourth-highest smoking rate in the United States, the top cancer killer in the state is lung cancer, which will kill about 7,400 Ohio residents this year.
Second-leading cause
Colorectal cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in Ohio among men and women. An estimated 6,900 will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer this year and some 2,700 will die from the disease, Stabilito said.
The ACS says about 65 percent of cancer deaths, and 50 percent of the number of cancer cases, could be avoided by eliminating tobacco use and implementing lifestyle changes such as improving diet and increasing exercise.
alcorn@vindy.com