An annual report from the American Cancer Society announced that there were 2.1 million fewer cancer deaths between 1991 and 2014. That equates to a 25 percent reduction in the overall cancer death rate in the country.

The ACS stated that this, as well as the decrease in death cancer rates for four major cancers, is largely due to steady reductions in smoking and advancements in early detection and treatment.

Liver cancer is three times more prevalent among men than women because of higher rates of Hepatitis C virus, smoking and alcohol consumption.

Melanoma is 60 percent more common in men than women and the deaths rates are more than double in men. But the largest disparities are for esophagus, larynx and bladder cancer in which the incidence and death rates are about four times higher in men.

Racial disparities in cancer death rates are continuing to decline. The excess risk of cancer death in African American men lowered from 47 percent in 1990 to 21 percent in 2014.

In 2014, the rate was 15 percent higher in African Americans than in white Americans, but improved access to care due to the ACA might narrow that gap. Between 2010 and 2015, the number of uninsured African Americans and Hispanic Americans dropped by half.

Dr. Otis W. Brawley, chief medical officer of the ACS, believes that in order to continue this success, more clinical and basic research is needed to improve early detection and treatment. Innovative strategies are also needed to encourage healthier behavior among Americans.

"Finally, we need to consistently apply existing knowledge in cancer control across all segments of the population, particularly to disadvantaged groups," he said in a statement.

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