Skin Cancer Rates by Race and Ethnicity

The rate of people getting melanoma of the skin or dying from melanoma of the skin varies by race and ethnicity.

Incidence Rates by Race/Ethnicity and Sex

"Incidence rate" means how many people out of a given number get the disease each year. The graph below shows how many people out of 100,000 got melanoma of the skin each year during the years 1999–2009. The year 2009 is the most recent year for which numbers have been reported. The melanoma of the skin incidence rate is grouped by race and ethnicity.

The graph below shows that in 2009, white people had the highest rate of getting melanoma of the skin, followed by American Indian/Alaska Native, Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, and black people.

Melanoma of the Skin
Incidence Rates* by Race/Ethnicity and Sex, U.S., 1999–2009

Incidence source: Combined data from the National Program of Cancer Registries as submitted to CDC and from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results program as submitted to the National Cancer Institute in November 2011.
*Rates are per 100,000 persons and are age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population (19 age groups – Census P25-1130). Incidence rates cover approximately 90% of the U.S. population.
^†Hispanic origin is not mutually exclusive from race categories (white, black, Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native).

Death Rates by Race/Ethnicity and Sex

From 1999–2009, the rate of people dying from melanoma of the skin has varied, depending on their race and ethnicity. The graph below shows that in 2009, white people were more likely to die of melanoma of the skin than any other group, followed by Hispanic, black, and Asian/Pacific Islander people. American Indian/Alaska Native data are not available.

Melanoma of the Skin
Death Rates* by Race/Ethnicity and Sex, U.S., 1999–2009

Mortality source: U.S. Mortality Files, National Center for Health Statistics, CDC.
*Rates are per 100,000 persons and are age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population (19 age groups – Census P25-1130). Death rates cover 100% of the U.S. population.
^†Hispanic origin is not mutually exclusive from race categories (white, black, Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native).
^‡Statistics are not shown for <16 deaths.