Cancer deaths resulted in more than 4 million potential years of life lost in the U.S. in 2017, according to a November 13 study in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. While overall cancer mortality has gone down, the potential number of years of lost life has remained stable due to the growing U.S. population.
Cancer mortality rates are often used to calculate the burden of cancer in a society, but another measure -- potential years of life lost (PYLL) -- can also be useful because it can estimate the impact of cancer-related premature deaths that occur in younger individuals, according to a team led by Dr. Minkyo Song, PhD, a research fellow at the U.S. National Cancer Institute (Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, November 13, 2020).
To calculate potential years of life lost, Song et al examined U.S. national death certificate data and grouped it by 45 categories based on cancer type. They defined PYLL as the sum of total years of life lost before the age of 75. The most recent year of data acquisition was 2017.
Overall, the group found that 4.28 million potential years of life lost occurred due to cancer in 2107, compared to 4.26 million PYLL in 1990. The reason for the slight increase was the growth in the U.S. population, as cancer mortality has actually fallen over this time period from 215 deaths per 100,000 to 153 deaths per 100,000. Also in 2017, an average of 12 years of life before age 75 was lost per cancer death.
The group found that cancers that caused the largest number of deaths also caused the highest number of potential lives lost. But there were variances, particularly for cancers that typically occur at younger ages.
| Potential life years lost by cancer type in U.S. | ||
| Total potential life years lost (PYLL) | PYLL per death | |
| Lung and bronchus | 891,313 | 9.9 years |
| Colon and rectum | 409,538 | 13.3 years |
| Breast | 400,643 | 14.5 years |
| Pancreas | 282,886 | 10.6 years |
| Liver and intrahepatic bile duct | 229,777 | 11.9 years |
| Brain and other nervous system | 221,026 | 17.3 years |
Of the cancers that contributed to the most potential life years lost per death, testicular cancer was the highest, at 34 years lost per death, followed by cancer of the bone and joints at 26.4 years lost, and other endocrine cancers including thymus at 25.2.
While the number of lost years roughly tracked cancer incidence, one exception was prostate cancer, which causes about 5.1% of U.S. cancer deaths but only 2% of PYLL. The reason is that prostate cancer typically occurs later in life, Song et al noted.
![Examples of ultrasound findings and techniques. (A) Images in a 39-year-old male patient with a mass in the left thigh. The mass is heterogeneous on the B-mode US image (compared with the patient in D) and showed increased microvascularity (superb microvascular imaging [SMI]) and shear-wave elastography (SWE) values. Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy (with pleomorphic rhabdomyosarcoma in surgical specimen). (B) Images in an 18-year-old male patient with a mass in the left leg. The mass is hypoechoic on the B-mode image, with no other findings suggestive of malignancy. The lesion is in contact with the cortex of the tibia, which is slightly irregular. CT revealed a doubtful anteromedial tibial erosion. The microvascular study demonstrated high vascularization, suggestive of malignancy. Periosteal Ewing sarcoma was diagnosed with both histologic and immunohistochemical confirmation. (C) Images in a 69-year-old female patient with a lump growing on the outside of the left leg. Multiple SWE examinations were performed (please note the high values obtained in the measurements, whereas the color map highlights the stiffness relative to adjacent tissues). SMI showed areas of increased vascularization to target for sampling. Undifferentiated spindle cell sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with residual leiomyosarcoma in the surgical specimen after neoadjuvant therapy. (D) Images in a 56-year-old female patient with a mass in the right thigh. The mass is heterogeneous at both B-mode ultrasound (similar to patient A) and MRI (coronal T2-weighted spectral attenuated inversion recovery [SPAIR]; T1-weighted pre-contrast and postcontrast imaging), which even shows uptake after the administration of paramagnetic contrast material, which is traditionally suggestive of malignancy. Low values at SMI and elastography are suggestive of benignity. Spindle cell lipoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with atypical spindle cell lipomatous tumor in the surgical specimen.](https://img.auntminnie.com/mindful/smg/workspaces/default/uploads/2026/08/images-radiol250278fig2.APCFLSvX6p.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=crop&h=100&q=70&w=100)
![Examples of ultrasound findings and techniques. (A) Images in a 39-year-old male patient with a mass in the left thigh. The mass is heterogeneous on the B-mode US image (compared with the patient in D) and showed increased microvascularity (superb microvascular imaging [SMI]) and shear-wave elastography (SWE) values. Undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy (with pleomorphic rhabdomyosarcoma in surgical specimen). (B) Images in an 18-year-old male patient with a mass in the left leg. The mass is hypoechoic on the B-mode image, with no other findings suggestive of malignancy. The lesion is in contact with the cortex of the tibia, which is slightly irregular. CT revealed a doubtful anteromedial tibial erosion. The microvascular study demonstrated high vascularization, suggestive of malignancy. Periosteal Ewing sarcoma was diagnosed with both histologic and immunohistochemical confirmation. (C) Images in a 69-year-old female patient with a lump growing on the outside of the left leg. Multiple SWE examinations were performed (please note the high values obtained in the measurements, whereas the color map highlights the stiffness relative to adjacent tissues). SMI showed areas of increased vascularization to target for sampling. Undifferentiated spindle cell sarcoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with residual leiomyosarcoma in the surgical specimen after neoadjuvant therapy. (D) Images in a 56-year-old female patient with a mass in the right thigh. The mass is heterogeneous at both B-mode ultrasound (similar to patient A) and MRI (coronal T2-weighted spectral attenuated inversion recovery [SPAIR]; T1-weighted pre-contrast and postcontrast imaging), which even shows uptake after the administration of paramagnetic contrast material, which is traditionally suggestive of malignancy. Low values at SMI and elastography are suggestive of benignity. Spindle cell lipoma was diagnosed at biopsy, with atypical spindle cell lipomatous tumor in the surgical specimen.](https://img.auntminnie.com/mindful/smg/workspaces/default/uploads/2026/08/images-radiol250278fig2.APCFLSvX6p.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=2&fit=crop&h=167&q=70&w=250)
