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
Woolwich 1918
Annual report of the Medical Officer of Health 1918
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The Borough Council's scheme for the Treatment of
Tuberculosis — particularly for the provision of a Tuberculosis
Dispensary — was set out in the Annual Report for 1914.
The work of the Tuberculosis Care Committee was
described in the Annual Report for 1915.
CANCER,
68. There were 161 deaths from Cancer (malignant tumour)
giving a death rate of 1.10, compared with 1.06, 0.90, 0.95 and
0.38, in the four preceding years, 79 of the deaths were in
males and 82 in females. 85, or nearly half the deaths, were
in persons between 45 and 65. The highest mortality was in
Woolwich parish. The death-rate in London was 1.27.
There were 8 deaths from sarcoma and 155 from carcinoma.
The deaths from carcinoma have been classified under
the organs affected, since 1903, and the following table shows
the result for males and females respectively:-
Carcinoma. Males.
| Seat of Primary Disease | Aver, 1903-5 | Aver, 1906 -10 | Aver, 1911 -10 | 1916 | 1917 | 1918 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Head and face | 1.7 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| Mouth, jaw and tongue | 4.0 | 4.8 | 7.2 | 7 | 4 | 9 |
| Pharynx, oesophagus, larynx and nock | 5.0 | 8.6 | 10.4 | 8 | 11 | 16 |
| Pleura, lung, mediastinum | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.4 | – | – | 1 |
| Stomach and Pylorus | 5.3 | 10.4 | 9.2 | 14 | 13 | 15 |
| Intestines (excluding rectum) | 2.7 | 3.2 | 4.6 | 4 | 8 | 2 |
| Rectum and anus | 4.0 | 4. 8 | 5.8 | 5 | 3 | 12 |
| Peritoneum, omentum and liver | 8.7 | 6.4 | 7.0 | 3 | 6 | 8 |
| Kidney and Bladder | – | 1.6 | 1.8 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| (Genital organs | – | – | ||||
| (Prostate and external urinary | 2.7 | 0.8 | 2.8 | – | 2 | – |
| Pancreas | 0.3 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Undefined and all other | 0.6 | 2.2 | 2.2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 35.3 | 45.8 | 54.4 | 51 | 54 | 75 |