Deaths Mentioning Both Pancreatic Cancer and Renal Failure in the United States, 1999–2024: Temporal Trends and Disparities

Abstract

Background: We examined temporal trends in deaths mentioning both pancreatic cancer and renal failure in the United States. Methods: We analyzed CDC WONDER multiple-cause-of-death data for adults aged ≥25 years from 1999 to 2024. Age-adjusted mortality rates (AAMRs) were assessed using Joinpoint regression. Secondary analyses quantified renal-failure co-recording among pancreatic-cancer-involving deaths, renal-failure subtypes, disparities, and comparisons with lung and bronchus, colorectal, and liver and intrahepatic bile duct cancers. Results: Overall, 31,497 deaths mentioned both conditions. The AAMR increased from 0.37 per 100,000 in 1999 to 0.82 in 2024, with the most rapid increase during 2018–2024 (annual percentage change, 10.77%; 95% CI, 7.18–18.22%). Renal failure was co-recorded in 2.98% of pancreatic-cancer-involving deaths. Corresponding proportions were 2.37% for lung and bronchus, 4.75% for colorectal, and 5.77% for liver and intrahepatic bile duct cancer; recent trends did not differ significantly from pancreatic cancer. Acute kidney failure was the most frequently recorded renal subtype (43.22%). In 2024, AAMRs were higher among males and highest among non-Hispanic Black individuals. Conclusions: Renal-failure co-recording with pancreatic cancer increased markedly after 2018 but was not unique to pancreatic cancer. Death-certificate data do not establish temporal sequence or causality; linked clinical data are needed to clarify potentially modifiable kidney-related pathways.