Originally published by SmileHub.
Over 611,000 people died from cancer in the U.S. in 2024, and around 2 million more cases were diagnosed, according to the latest data from the National Cancer Institute. With the goal of ending cancer in mind, the U.S. has approved a budget of over $7.2 billion for the National Cancer Institute for 2025. Considering the number of deaths, new cases, and the goal of eradicating cancer, continued research of cancer in all its forms is critical.
While many researchers across the United States are working to understand and treat all kinds of cancer, some states create better environments for researching the disease than others. To highlight the best states for cancer research and those that have room to improve, SmileHub compared each of the 50 states based on 13 key metrics. The data set ranges from the number of clinical trials per capita to the cancer incidence rate to the quality of cancer treatment hospitals.
Top 5 States for Cancer Research
1. Massachusetts
2. New York
3. California
4. Colorado
5. Maryland
Methodology
To determine the best states for cancer research, SmileHub compared the 50 states across three key dimensions: 1) Research Funding & Resources, 2) Research Output & Impact and 3) Health Care Infrastructure & Support.
We evaluated those dimensions using 13 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the highest level of focus on cancer research. For metrics marked with an asterisk (*), the square root of the population was used to calculate the population size in order to avoid overcompensating for population differences across states.
We determined each state’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order the states.
Research Funding & Resources – Total Points: 40
- Research Charities per Capita*: Full Weight (~8.00 Points)
- Researchers per Capita: Full Weight (~8.00 Points)
- Research Universities per Capita*: Full Weight (~8.00 Points)
- National Institutes of Health Grant Funding: Full Weight (~8.00 Points)
Note: This composed metric includes the number of grants per capita and the total funding per capita.
- American Cancer Society Grant Funding per Capita*: Full Weight (~8.00 Points)
Research Output & Impact – Total Points: 30
- Clinical Trials per Capita: Full Weight (~10.00 Points)
Note: This metric includes completed clinical trials as outlined on ClinicalTrials.gov by the National Institutes of Health, National Center for Biotechnology Information.
- Cancer Incidence Rate: Full Weight (~10.00 Points)
- Cancer Mortality Rate: Full Weight (~10.00 Points)
Health Care Infrastructure & Support – Total Points: 30
- Health & Wellness Charities per Capita*: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
- Quality of Cancer Treatment Hospitals: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
Note: This metric is based on the U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Hospitals for Cancer.”
- Cancer Centers per Capita*: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
- Share of Insured Adults: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
- Share of Insured Children: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
Sources: Data used to create this ranking was collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Internal Revenue Service, National Center for Education Statistics, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, American Cancer Society, ClinicalTrials.gov and U.S. News & World Report.
