09/02/2026
252 Veterans a day.
That number stopped us in our tracks, so we went directly to the source to make sure we understood what it actually means.
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' 2025 National Veteran Su***de Prevention Annual Report, Part 2, 92,166 Veterans died from cancer in 2023.
Cancer accounted for 21% of all Veteran deaths and was the second-leading cause of death among Veterans, behind only heart disease.
92,166 ÷ 365 = approximately 252 Veterans every day.
That's more than 10 Veterans every hour and roughly one Veteran every 6 minutes.
We also want to be very clear about what this number represents.
This does NOT mean 92,166 Veterans died from cancer within the VA healthcare system.
This is a national Veteran mortality statistic. VA identifies Veteran deaths using national mortality data, including death certificate information. That means the number is not limited to Veterans who received their cancer treatment at a VA hospital.
A Veteran could receive cancer care through the VA, VA Community Care, Medicare, private insurance, or a civilian cancer center and still be represented in national Veteran mortality data.
That's an important distinction.
But it doesn't make the number any less concerning.
92,166 Veterans lost to cancer in a single year.
252 every day.
For us, this is another reason we need to keep talking about cancer in the Veteran community, military and toxic exposures, understanding a Veteran's service history, and finding cancer as early as possible.
Every one of those 92,166 represents a Veteran and a family whose lives were changed by cancer.
We have more work to do.
SOURCE:
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
2025 National Veteran Su***de Prevention Annual Report, Part 2: Report Findings
Table 9 — Leading Causes of Death, Veterans, by Number of Deaths, 2023
