The age-adjusted cancer mortality rate for Black people in Iowa is more than 25% greater than it is for white Iowans.
Report co-author Mary Charlton, professor of epidemiology in the University of Iowa College of Public Health, says the numbers are adjusted for age, Black Iowans are more apt to get cancer when they’re younger, whereas white Iowans are more likely to get it when they’re older.
“When examining rates by age at diagnosis, we found that in the 60- to 69-year-old age group the Black population had an age-adjusted new case rate that was 33% higher than the white population. The cancer incidence rates became more similar in the older age groups. This shows how cancer impacts the Black population in Iowa at younger ages.”