Trends in Racial Disparities in Cervical Cancer Mortality in the 50 Most Populous U.S. Counties [ID 844]

INTRODUCTION: While advances in cervical cancer prevention and early detection have reduced mortality rates in the United States, racial disparities persist. This study examines county-level temporal trends in cervical cancer mortality in Black and White populations. METHODS: Age-adjusted cervical cancer mortality rates in the 50 most populous U.S. counties were obtained from the SEER database across six 8-year intervals from 1969 to 2022 (T1: 1969–1977 to T6: 2014–2022). Counties with more than one interval of missing data were excluded. Trends were assessed using weighted linear regression. RESULTS: Of 49 counties with available data, 41 showed declines in all-race mortality rates ( P <.05). Mortality rates declined linearly in 31 of 34 counties for Black individuals ( P <.05; T1: mean, per 100,000 people, 7.88 [SE 0.15] to T6: 1.64 [0.04]) and in 33 of 49 counties for White individuals ( P <.05; T1: 2.76 [0.03] to T6: 1.04 [0.01]). Average Black-to-White mortality rate ratio across counties was 2.96 in T1 (significant in 27 of 31 counties) and 1.67 in T6 (significant in 21 of 42 counties; P <.05). The ratio in T6 ranged from 0.87 to 4.36, with highest values in Hennepin, Minnesota (4.36); Nassau, New York (3.24); St. Louis County, Missouri (2.89); New York, New York (2.60); Fulton, Georgia (2.54); and Cook, Illinois (2.26). CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS: Although disparities in cervical cancer mortality have narrowed, mortality has not equalized, and there is geographic variability. These findings highlight the importance of local-level assessment to identify targeted interventions across the cervical cancer screening and early detection continuum, especially in the current context of rapidly evolving prevention strategies.