London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Greenwich 1970
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Greenwich Borough]
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54
Cancer
Second only to heart disease as the principal cause of death in
the community, this disease, which has so many psychological
connotations not met with in other diseases, claimed 606 victims
(332 males and 274 females) during the year under review, an
increase of 41 over those recorded during 1969.
Although, during 1970, deaths from carcinoma of the breast
fell by 11 to 51, a decrease of almost 18%, those from cancer of
the stomach advanced by more than 13% to a total of 75. Mortality
from cancer of the uterus rose by 2 to 12 and the 172 deaths
arising from carcinoma of the lung indicated a less favourable
trend when compared with the previous year's total of 158. In
accounting for some 33 deaths, 23 males and 10 females, cancer
of the bladder showed an increase of more than 83% over 1969.
The total of 606 cancer deaths was equivalent to 23.2% of deaths from all causes, indicating that approximately one death in every four resulted from some form of cancer. The following table shows the various sites affected:—
| Site | Male | Female | Total | Rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buccal Cavity, etc. | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0.03 |
| Oesophagus | 8 | 6 | 14 | 0.06 |
| Stomach | 49 | 26 | 75 | 0.34 |
| Intestine | 36 | 46 | 82 | 0.36 |
| Larynx | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0.02 |
| Lung, Bronchus | 133 | 39 | 172 | 0.76 |
| Breast | 2 | 49 | 51 | 0.23 |
| Uterus | — | 12† | 12 | 0.05 |
| Prostate | 22 | — | 22 | 0.10 |
| Leukaemia | 9 | 8 | 17 | 0.07 |
| Others | 68 | 83 | 151 | 0.67 |
| Totals | 332 | 274 | 606 | 2.69 |
* Per 1,000 population
t Cancer of the Cervix—6 (rate 0.03)
Lung Cancer—The persistent rise in total cancer deaths throughout
the country is due, almost entirely, to an increase in cancer
of the lung, deaths from which have been advancing at a rate of
almost 1,000 per year since 1960; indeed the present total of 30,281
for England and Wales with a calculated rate of 0.62 indicates an
average yearly increase of 3.7% over the last decade. The Borough
rate of 0.76 shows a rise of 0.06 over that for 1969 compared with
0.75 for Greater London, a conurbation which has consistently
returned a high figure while following the national trend.