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QuickStats: Percentage* of Adults Aged ≥45 Years Who Have Ever Had Lung Cancer,† by Education Level — National Health Interview Survey,§ United States, 2021
Weekly / November 11, 2022 / 71(45);1460
Abbreviation: GED = general educational development certificate.
* With 95% CIs indicated by error bars.
† Based on an affirmative response to the survey question, “Have you ever been told by a doctor or other health professional that you had cancer or a malignancy of any kind?” followed by mention of “lung cancer” when asked “What kind of cancer was it?”
§ Estimates are based on household interviews of a sample of the civilian, noninstitutionalized U.S. population.
In 2021, 3.2% of adults aged ≥45 years had ever been told they had lung cancer. The prevalence of lung cancer among adults aged ≥45 years was highest for those with less than a high school education (8.6%). The percentage of adults who had ever had lung cancer decreased with increasing education level, with the lowest prevalence occurring among those with a bachelor’s degree or higher (1.6%).
Source: National Center for Health Statistics, National Health Interview Survey, 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis.htm
Reported by: Julie D. Weeks, PhD, jweeks@cdc.gov, 301-458-4562; Nazik Elgaddal, MS.
Suggested citation for this article: QuickStats: Percentage of Adults Aged ≥45 Years Who Have Ever Had Lung Cancer, by Education Level — National Health Interview Survey, United States, 2021. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2022;71:1460. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7145a6.
For more information on this topic, CDC recommends the following link: https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/lung/basic_info/
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