The trend, outlined in the American Cancer Society's (ACS) annual statistical report, is due to the fact that heart-disease mortality is falling faster than cancer deaths, experts say, although they note that too many people still smoke and eat to excess.

The report showed that in 2002, 476,009 Americans under age 85 died of cancer, compared to 450,637 who died of heart disease. One in three cancer deaths is smoking-related. However, colon-cancer and lung-cancer deaths have dropped dramatically, especially among men, as more men quit or abstain from smoking.

Among women, cancer deaths have leveled off after rising for several years. "The lung-cancer epidemic has peaked in women and we're likely to see stabilization of rates or a decline from this point on," said ACS researcher Elizabeth Ward.

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