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Colorectal cancer begins as a tiny growth (polyp) in the colon or rectum that has become cancerous. The disease has been associated with a number of lifestyle factors that include being overweight or obese, being physically inactive, eating a diet of red meat and processed meat, consuming alcohol, and using tobacco products. Other factors, such as genetics and family history can increase one’s risk.
Multiple screening options including a colonoscopy and simple take-home tests are available. Some types of screening tests detect polyps and allow them to be removed before turning into cancer. Read more about colorectal cancer.
Back to topAnnual Colorectal Cancer Incidence Data
Annual cancer incidence measures can be used to identify trends and patterns of cancer incidence over time. Annual measures are only available at the state level. County-level cancer incidence measures are available as five-year aggregate data.
Measure Description:
- The Cancer Count is the number of newly diagnosed malignant cancers.
- The Crude Rate (Per 100K) is the rate of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per 100,000 population.
- The Age Adjusted Rate (Per 100K) is the age adjusted rate of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per 100,000 population. Age adjustment to the 2000 Standard US Census is done to allow direct comparison of rates in counties and state with different population age distributions.
5-Year Colorectal Cancer Incidence Data
Five Year incidence measures can be used to identify trends and patterns of cancer incidence over time and in different geographic areas. Five-year aggregate measures are available at the state and county level. Five-year aggregate data is used to reduce the presence of suppressed values due to small numbers; allowing the display of data, and stabilization of rates to better evaluate trends. Even with this aggregation some values still need to be suppressed.
Measure Description:
- The Average Annual Count is the average number of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per year in the five-year period.
- The Crude Rate (Per 100K) is the rate of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per 100,000 Population during the five-year period.
- The Age Adjusted Rate (Per 100K) is the age adjusted rate of newly diagnosed malignant cancers per 100,000 Population during the five-year period. Age adjustment to the 2000 Standard US Census is done to allow direct comparison of rates in counties and state with different population age distributions.