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occupation. Hereditary predisposition has not at present been
proved to be of any practical importance in man. There is no
scientific evidence that the use of any particular article of food
increases the liability to cancer, nor will any known drug or
preparation prevent the appearance of the disease or cure it when
present. No danger of cancer has been proved to result from
inhabiting houses or districts in which cancer happens to have
been exceptionally common, nor, in spite of recent work on this
aspect of the subject, can it be said that cancer is to be regarded
as infectious or contagious.
It is known that cancer not infrequently follows on chronic
and prolonged irritation. Some tissues are more susceptible than
others in this respect, such as the skin of the face, the insides of
the cheeks, the tongue and the lower part of the bowel A elay
pipe, a jagged tooth, or a badly fitting denture may be the
source of irritation. This fact should be known and appreciated
by all, for such sources of irritation can readily be avoided. The
public should realise that the best that medical science can offer
at the moment is early diagnosis and adequate treatment by
operation, and if an early diagnosis of cancer is to be made the
public must themselves seek medical advice on the first appearance
of any suspicious sign. Recent investigations in regard to
cancer of the breast in females have shown the importance of
early and effective treatment. In the absence of such treatment,
women so affected have roughly one-sixth of the normal
duration of life to look forward to; those subjected to the complete
operation during the comparatively late stage of the disease
at which the average patient appears for treatment under present
unsatisfactory conditions have about one-third of the normal
duration to expect; while those so operated upon at an early
age may anticipate approximately two-thirds of the normal after
life-time.
Infant Mortality Rate.—There were 57 deaths of infants
under one year of age in 1926. This is equal to an infant
mortality rate of 47.2 per 1,000 births—the third lowest figure
in the history of the Borough. The lowest rate (41 per 1,000
births) was that for 1924. The infant mortality rate for England
and Wales was 70.