This indicator reports the age adjusted incidence rate (cases per 100,000 population per year) of cancer (all sites) adjusted to 2000 U.S. standard population age groups (Under age 1, 1-4, 5-9, ..., 80-84, 85 and older).

Within the report area, there were 168 new cases of cancer reported. This means there is a rate of 439.2 for every 100,000 total population.

Note: This indicator is compared to the state average.
Data Source: State Cancer Profiles. 2014-18. 

As demonstrated by the map below, Dixon and Thurston counties have much higher cancer incidence rates than the other two in this health district but comparable, even lower, than other nearby counties. 

Cancer Incidence, Rate Per 100,000 Population by Race / Ethnicity

This indicator reports the age-adjusted cancer incidence rate per 100,000 people for the 5-year period 2014-2018 by race and by Hispanic origin.

Cancer was rated third only to mental health and COVID-19 when given choices of community concerns  in the community health surveys to rank. In answering the open ended question,”What worries you most about your health or the health of your family?”7.1% specifically mentioned cancer, especially being concerned about family history, as well as risk factors including smoking. Within the report area, there were 168 new cases of cancer reported (2014-2018). This means there is a rate of 439.2 for every 100,000 total population. This indicator reports the age adjusted incidence rate (cases per 100,000 population per year) of cancer (all sites) adjusted to 2000 U.S. standard population age groups. Dixon and Thurston counties had much higher rates (see table below)  The rates for various types of cancer are also higher in each of our counties than the state average (as noted by the figures in the red boxes in Figure 35).

Cancer

No one wants to hear the “c-word” (cancer) from their doctors.  Screenings however can make a real difference. Rural populations can be less likely to pursue cancer prevention including screening.  “Fatalism regarding cancer events was consistent with thoughts of pessimism or hopelessness that nothing can be done to reduce cancer risk, a lack of understanding on which cancer recommendations for prevention were effective or the perception that everything caused cancer.”  (Taylor, 2019)  While the primary source of information continues to be the primary care provider (PCP), rural residents who used the internet for cancer information have been less fatalistic.  (Taylor, 2019) See discussions of health information and broadband access.

Up-to-date on breast cancer screening, Females 50-74 trending in a positive direction, while the percent of female Medicare enrollees that receive mammography screening had plateaued in 2017.

Cancer Screening - Sigmoidoscopy or Colonoscopy is an issue in this region considering frequency of colon cancer.  The rate in the local district has stayed below the state average since 2012,  (59.7% to 68.7%). In the state of Nebraska, the Hispanic population was least likely to report having a colonoscopy in the past 10 years at 40.4%, with American Indians at 49.4%, compared with African Americans slightly less than Whites  (Zhang).

Up-to-date on Cervical Cancer Screening, Females 21-65 years old had been trending in a negative direction as of 2018 (a 22% decrease from 2012).