604 Background: Gallbladder cancer is a rare, highly fatal malignancy, often diagnosed at an advanced stage. Understanding its mortality trends and disparities is crucial for targeted interventions. In this mortality database study of death certificates, obtained from a data registry spanning from 1999 to 2024, we examined mortality trends using national mortality datasets among individuals suffering from gall bladder carcinoma in the United States. Methods: In this retrospective study, our aim was to analyze these trends in mortality among US residents by demographic characteristics including gender, race/ethnicity, and geographic characteristics like urbanization and census region, and States. The national mortality data from the multiple causes of death files in the CDC WONDER Database were queried by applying the ICD-10 codes as C23.0 for gall bladder cancer to identify deaths among the US population from 1999 to 2024. Trends in age-adjusted mortality rate (AAMR) were assessed with average annual percentage changes (AAPC), and 95% confidence intervals (CI). The data was analyzed on statistical software Joinpoint regression by National Institutes of Health (version 5.4). Results: From 1999 to 2024, mortality from gallbladder cancer demonstrated a significant decline averaging 8 per million population in 1999 up to 5.5 per million in 2024. Mortality declined across both sexes with females being more highly affected (68%). Recent data up to 2024 show a continued decrease in mortality, with an AAPC of –1.42% per year (95% CI: –1.56% to –1.27%). Racial and ethnic disparities have emerged. Although overall mortality has declined, non-Hispanic Black individuals have not experienced comparable improvements, and Hispanic patients continue to have the highest mortality overall (AAMR ranging 10.04-7.67 per million population). There were a total of 57,822 deaths due to gall bladder cancer in the United States from 1999-2024, with a crude mortality rate of 7.15 per 1,000,000 population, and 83% of which occurred in metropolitan regions. States in top percentile for mortality included Delaware, New York, New Mexico, Nebraska, Iowa, and Pennsylvania. Conclusions: These findings provide valuable insights into age-adjusted mortality patterns among the United States population with gall bladder carcinoma. Between 1999 and 2024, the age-adjusted mortality rate from gallbladder cancer in the U.S. has steadily declined, although progress is uneven across racial or geographical groups. These findings underscore the importance of improved early detection, particularly in underserved population.
Aziz et al. (Sat,) studied this question.