Where you live could be a matter of life or death if you get cancer

Cancer deaths have declined in the U.S. over the past three decades, but mortality rates can vary greatly depending on the county where you live. Researchers say that information could better inform treatment and prevention efforts in certain communities.

The overall rate of death from cancer has decreased by 20%, according to a study published Tuesday in JAMA. From 1980 to 2014, it's gone from 240 deaths to 192 deaths for every 100,000 people.

During that same period, more than 19,511,910 cancer deaths were recorded in the U.S., which included 7 million who died from tracheal, bronchus and lung cancer; 5 million due to colon and rectum cancer; 6 million due to breast cancer; 2 million due to pancreatic cancer; and 1 million due to prostate cancer.

But the analysis found wide variation in mortality among counties. Florida's Union County had the highest cancer-mortality rate in the country with 503 deaths for every 100,000 people in 2014, while Summit County, Colo., had the lowest occurrence, with 70 deaths for every 100,000 for the same year.

Counties in Southern states had some of the highest cancer morality rates, according to the study. Counties clustered along the Mississippi River in Mississippi and Arkansas are some of the most heavily affected areas and include some of the poorest communities, where access to such preventive services as cancer screenings and mammograms can be exceedingly difficult for low-income patients.

Researchers estimated mortality rates of 29 cancer types by county using records from the National Center for Health Statistics and population counts from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Cancer is one of the 10 leading causes of death in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Patients with chronic disease make up more than 80% of all healthcare spending, with cancer care alone costing an estimated $157 billion in 2010 dollars.

Lead study author Dr. Ali Mokdad, professor of global health at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle said the findings are the first to track and analyze cancer mortality rates on a county level. He said he hoped it could help healthcare organizations identify specific health problems within their communities and better align resources to address such issues. The data could also help health professionals make the case for greater resources and funding.

Preventing or effectively managing chronic illness among the populations they serve has been a top priority and one of the toughest challenges for the nation's health systems and hospitals. In recent years, social factors such as poverty, unemployment, violence and lack of housing have become more seriously attributed to poorer health outcomes in low-income communities.

Mokdad said tracking mortality at the county level can reveal where there is inadequate access to quality treatment.

“We're hoping that these communities will look around and see similar communities who have dealt with the same issues and that are doing way better share knowledge and experience,” Mokdad said.