Deaths involving brain cancer and a stopped heart have slowly dropped since 1999
Original title: Temporal Trends and Disparities in Malignant Brain Neoplasms and Cardiac Arrest- Associated Mortality in the United States, 1999-2024: A Retrospective Analysis.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was tested in people. That is the most reliable kind of research we share.
This study only counted past deaths in people. It did not test any treatment.
The short version
Fewer people are dying this way than in 1999, but not every group has gained the same.
What was studied. Researchers looked at U.S. death records from 1999 to 2024. They counted adults aged 45 and older whose deaths involved both brain cancer and cardiac arrest, which is when the heart stops.
What they found. They found 28,117 deaths. The death rate fell from 1.13 per 100,000 people in 1999 to 0.74 in 2024. Men had higher rates than women, 0.85 compared with 0.65 in 2024. Rates were highest in the West at 1.60 and lowest in the Midwest at 0.35.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: Deaths like these have become less common over time. Where someone lives, and their sex, race, or age, still seem to matter. Your own care team is the best guide for what this means for you.
What it doesn't mean: This is not a treatment, and it is not a cure. It is a count of past deaths, not a test of any drug or therapy. Nothing here changes the care a doctor can offer today. The numbers cannot say what will happen to one person. They also do not explain why the gaps between groups exist.
Source: PubMed, September 1, 2026 · Read the original
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