Rural-Urban Disparities Seen in Cervical Cancer
FRIDAY, March 7, 2025 -- The incidence of and mortality from cervical cancer are higher among rural-residing women versus their urban counterparts within the United States, according to a research letter published online March 3 in JAMA Network Open.
Trisha L. Amboree, Ph.D., M.P.H., from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, and colleagues used the National Program of Cancer Registries and Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results databases to investigate rural-urban disparities in cervical cancer incidence and mortality.
The researchers found that incidence increased by 0.85 percent per year in rural counties from 2012 to 2019 after decreasing from 2001 to 2012. However, the incidence plateaued in urban counties after decreasing during 2001 to 2013. From 2013 to 2019, the gap between rural and urban incidence rates widened (2013: rate ratio, 1.16; 2019: rate ratio, 1.25). Incidence increased among rural White women by 1.05 percent per year from 2012 to 2019. Incidence declined among rural Hispanic women, as well as among urban White and Black women. In rural areas, mortality was 1.42 times higher than in urban counties from 2015 to 2019. This finding persisted across races compared with their urban counterparts.
"If unaddressed, lower human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine uptake in rural areas may contribute to further widening disparities in the future," the authors write.
Two authors disclosed ties to Value Analytics Lab and/or Merck.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Read this next
Features of Immunesenescence Present in Early Stages of Rheumatoid Arthritis
THURSDAY, Sept. 11, 2025 -- Some features of immunesenescence are present in the very early stages of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), according to a study published online Sept. 3 in...
Urine Biomarker Panel Sensitive, Specific for Prostate Cancer Diagnosis
THURSDAY, Sept. 11, 2025 -- A urine-based biomarker panel has high accuracy for diagnosing prostate cancer (PCa), according to a study published in the September issue of...
Hospitals Vary in Their Definition of Blood Culture Contamination
THURSDAY, Sept. 11, 2025 -- U.S. hospitals vary in how they define blood culture contamination (BCC), according to a study published online July 11 in the Journal of Clinical...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.