Melanoma incidence rising, deaths decreasing
Facts at your fingertips
By Emily Margosian, assistant editor, December 1, 2019
According to data from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program (SEER), there were an estimated 96,480 new cases of melanoma of the skin in 2019 — making it the fifth most common type of cancer in the United States, following breast, lung, prostate, and colorectal cancer. NIH data also revealed that there were an estimated 7,230 deaths in the U.S. due to melanoma this past year, accounting for 1.2% of all cancer deaths. NIH historical data indicate that while rates for new cases of melanoma have been rising on average 1.5% each year for the past 10 years, death rates have been falling on average 2.5% each year between 2007 through 2016.
For further illustration on how melanoma incidence and mortality have evolved over the past 40 years, see the chart below.
