U.S. Breast Cancer Death Rates Dropping

The U.S. breast cancer death rate continues to drop more than 2 percent per year, a trend that began in 1990, researchers say.

The findings, published in Breast Cancer Facts & Figures 2009-2010, also reveal over the last 10 years the rate of decline among African-American and Hispanic women has been similar to the drop among white women.

However, death rates for breast cancer remain 40 percent higher in African-American than white women.

"Breast cancer remains a major fear for women living in the United States and a major cause of cancer death, but it's important to note that a woman's chances of dying from breast cancer have now been dropping for more than a decade," Dr. Otis W. Brawley, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, said in a statement.

"We've now identified major risk factors for breast cancer, many of which are modifiable. For instance, we've seen a drop in incidence associated with less use of postmenopausal hormones and while that is gratifying to see, we remain concerned about obesity's potential to offset that drop, and lead to an increase in the incidence of breast cancer in the future."