New US cancer statistics

According to a new report by the National Institutes Of Health, the overall decline in cancer deaths nearly doubled from 2002 through 2004. Now, almost 70 percent of cancer patients live five years past their diagnosis.

Doctors said cancer deaths are actually falling a bit faster than they expected.

Deaths from colorectal cancer are down for both men and women. The No. 1 killer in both sexes, lung cancer, is decreasing in men but still rising in women, although at a slower rate than in the past.

"We're seeing the impact of early detection, better treatment, better care all around," Dr. Brenda Edwards of the National Cancer Institute said.

The rate of people being diagnosed with cancer has been stable since 1995. However, there are certain kinds that are not letting up. In men, Myeloma, kidney and liver cancers have been rising. In women, lymphoma, melanoma and thyroid cancer continue to increase.