New Number 1 Killer... Cancer

There's a new number one killer here in the U.S.... cancer.

What it basically means is that for all of us we can't let our guard down, especially when it comes to cancer and heart disease, the two leading causes of death here in the U.S.

But according to the American Cancer Society, for one group in particular, Hispanics, cancer has overtaken heart disease to become the leading cause of death. Part of this is because the Hispanic population has gotten younger over the last few years and younger people tend to have more problems with cancer than with heart disease. But part of the reason is also because of advances in treating heart disease. In particular, cholesterol lowering and high blood pressure medications have made a big impact on our heart health.

Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are two other groups who also have cancer as their leading cause of death, but for the rest of Americans it's still heart disease, but not for long. Experts predict that in a year or two cancer will take over as the leading cause of death for all Americans.

The message here is that both cancer and heart disease are still taking their toll on us. That means we need to do what we can to prevent both by staying as healthy as possible. And according to the American Cancer Society it also means more research is needed into cancer causes, treatments and prevention so the new number one killer can be better taken care of and hopefully one day eliminated completely.