Mortality due to cirrhosis and liver cancer in the United States, 1999-2016: observational study

AbstractObjectiveTo describe liver disease related mortality in the United States during 1999-2016 by age group, sex, race, cause of liver disease, and geographic region.DesignObservational cohort study.SettingDeath certificate data from the Vital Statistics Cooperative, and population data from the US Census Bureau compiled by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Wide-ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (1999-2016).ParticipantsUS residents.Main outcome measureDeaths from cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma, with trends evaluated using joinpoint regression.ResultsFrom 1999 to 2016 in the US annual deaths from cirrhosis increased by 65%, to 34 174, while annual deaths from hepatocellular carcinoma doubled to 11 073. Only one subgroup—Asians and Pacific Islanders—experienced an improvement in mortality from hepatocellular carcinoma: the death rate decreased by 2.7% (95% confidence interval 2.2% to 3.3%, P