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
London County Council 1957
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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Leading
causes of
death
The leading causes of death in London in 1957 were as follows :
| Deaths | Rate per 1,000 population | |
|---|---|---|
| Diseases of the heart | 10,864 | 334 |
| Cancer | 7,956 | 244 |
| Bronchitis, pneumonia* | 4,784 | 1.47 |
| Vascular lesions of the central nervous system | 3,886 | 1.19 |
| Other circulatory | 1,829 | 0.56 |
| Violent causes | 1,482 | 0.46 |
| Digestive diseases | 1,396 | 0.43 |
| Diseases of early infancy (international classification Nos. 760-776) | 715 | 0.25 |
| Congenital malformations, 0-4 weeks | 112 | |
| Tuberculosis (all forms) | 428 | 0.13 |
| All other causes | 3,626 | 1.11 |
| Total | 37,078 | 11.39 |
* Excluding pneumonia of the new born (under 4 weeks) which is included in 'Diseases of early infancy'
The ranking order of the leading causes of death remains unchanged from 1956.
Heart disease was discussed in detail in my report for last year; cancer, the second
principal cause, with a rate of 2.44 per 1,000 (the highest ever recorded in peace time),
is increasing year by year as is shown by the following table :
Cancer
Table (iv)—Cancer mortality rates per 1,000 living, 1948-57
| Age and Sex | 1948 | 1949 | 1950 | 1951 | 1952 | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Males : | ||||||||||
| 0–14 | 0.03 | 0.06 | 0.11 | 0.10 | 0.11 | 0.12 | 0.11 | 0.10 | 0.13 | 0.09 |
| 15–44 | 0.30 | 0.29 | 0.38 | 0.35 | 0.37 | 0.39 | 0.34 | 0.33 | 0.36 | 0.31 |
| 45–64 | 4.05 | 4.09 | 4.45 | 4.28 | 4.19 | 4.28 | 4.31 | 4.50 | 4.51 | 4.55 |
| 65+ | 12.54 | 12.75 | 13.25 | 15.64 | 15.50 | 15.69 | 15.29 | 15.73 | 15.77 | 15.29 |
| All Males | 2.21 | 2.27 | 2.45 | 2.60 | 2.61 | 2.68 | 2.64 | 2.73 | 2.76 | 2.77 |
| Females : | ||||||||||
| 0-14 | 0.03 | 0.05 | 0.07 | 0.09 | 0.08 | 0.07 | 0.06 | 0.08 | 0.10 | 0.07 |
| 15-44 | 0.36 | 0.33 | 0.37 | 0.35 | 0.35 | 0.38 | 0.32 | 0.33 | 0.38 | 0.35 |
| 45-64 | 2.96 | 2.68 | 2.84 | 2.80 | 2.85 | 2.85 | 2.85 | 2.93 | 2.77 | 2.97 |
| 65+ | 9.08 | 9.08 | 8.95 | 8.79 | 8.77 | 8.73 | 8.39 | 8.43 | 8.75 | 8.34 |
| All Females | 1.95 | 1.93 | 1.98 | 1.99 | 2.02 | 2.04 | 2.02 | 2.08 | 2.12 | 2.16 |
| All Persons | 2.08 | 2.09 | 2.20 | 2.27 | 2.30 | 2.34 | 2.31 | 2.39 | 2.42 | 2.44 |
The importance of cancer lies in the fact that it is in middle age (45-64 years) its
impact is relatively greatest—greater than any other single cause in this age range.
For ages 45-64 years the contribution of cancer to total mortality in 1957 was for
males, 31, and for females 41 per cent., the corresponding proportions at age 65 years
and over, were 19 and 16 per cent. respectively.
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