As someone who has battled breast cancer twice, I probably have more interest in cancer statistics than most people. Any advances made against the disease might help me in the future should my cancer come back.

That’s why I was especially happy to look at the highlights from this year’s report from the American Cancer Society. For the first time, the five-year relative survival rate for all cancers combined reached 70% for people diagnosed during 2015-2021 in the United States, according to “Cancer Statistics, 2026,” which was released Jan. 13.

The most profound gains since the mid-1990s were those for people with the most fatal cancers. For instance, those diagnosed with liver cancer went from a survival rate of 7% to 22%. For myeloma, it went from 32% to 62%, and for lung cancer, it went from 15% to 28%.

“Seven in 10 people now survive their cancer five years or more, up from only half in the mid-‘70s,” said Rebecca Siegel, senior scientific director, surveillance research at the American Cancer Society and lead author of the report. “This stunning victory is largely the result of decades of cancer research that provided clinicians with the tools to treat the disease more effectively, turning many cancers from a death sentence into a chronic disease.”

Of course, for a lot of us, this good news comes too late for the many loved ones we’ve lost to cancer. Still, it’s reason for optimism for those who will be diagnosed in the future.

The report projects that in the United States, about 2.1 million new cancer cases will occur this year. That’s about 5,800 each day. Sadly, more than 626,000 of them will die from the disease. In Illinois, 78,000 of us are projected to be diagnosed with cancer, and 23,000 will die.

Lung cancer is expected to cause the most cancer deaths in 2026, according to the report, more than second-ranking colorectal cancer and third-ranking pancreatic cancer combined.

Although the cancer mortality rate has continued to drop through 2023, incidence continues to increase for many common cancers: breast, prostate, liver (female), melanoma (female), oral cavity, pancreas and uterine corpus (endometrial).

When I look at that list, I recognize how many of these cancers could be caught early if we all, and particularly women, make it a priority to get annual screenings. I know what it’s like to be too busy and to think that I’d rather not know, but having been through two battles with breast cancer, please know that it’s far better to find out about it early, when the survival rates are best.

In the meantime, researchers will continue to work to bring the survival rates for all cancers up. That is, if they continue to have the funding to do so.

“For decades, the federal government has been the largest funder of cancer research, which has translated to longer lives for people with even the most fatal cancers,” said Shane Jacobson, CEO American Cancer Society and the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. “But now, threats to cancer research funding and significant impact to access to health insurance could reverse this progress and stall future breakthroughs. We can’t stop now. There is still much work to be done.”

For those of us with cancer, we know that this disease isn’t just a one-and-done situation. It really is life changing. And it’s something that we never fully feel we are past.

Happily, the American Cancer Society team realizes this, too.

“Oncology treatment goes far beyond the medical care used to manage or attempt to cure the disease, said Dr. William Dahut, chief scientific officer at the American Cancer Society. “With survival rates increasing, this leads us to cancer survivorship, which means addressing the physical, emotional and financial challenges these patients face. We are encouraged by the number of resources to assist the millions of survivors, along with the caregivers and clinicians, but more strategies will be necessary to ensure everyone has the support need to have not only more days, but better days.”

In line with this, the American Cancer Society has developed guidelines for cancer survivors like me. These guidelines, as well as other information on managing health care as a cancer survivor, can be found here.

Despite the reasons for optimism, more still needs to be done. Let’s hope that’s possible.

• Joan Oliver is the former Northwest Herald assistant news editor. She has been associated with the Northwest Herald since 1990. She can be reached at jolivercolumn@gmail.com.