Worldwide patterns of cancer mortality, 1990–1994

Histograms of age-standardized (world standard) death certification rates from 24 cancers or groups of cancers and total cancer mortality for the 5-year calendar period 1990-94 were provided for 55 countries of the world: 35 countries in Europe, two in North America, nine in Latin America, two in Africa, five in Asia and two in Oceania. The highest male lung cancer mortality rates worldwide were registered in Hungary (82/100000), the Czech Republic and the Russian Federation, followed by other eastern European countries. Other major tobacco- (and alcohol)-related neoplasms also showed exceedingly high rates in Eastern Europe. For females, the highest lung cancer rates were in Scotland (29/100000), the United States (26/100000) and Denmark, reflecting the different spread of tobacco smoking in the two sexes. The highest rates for stomach cancer were in Latin America, the Russian Federation and Japan, and for colorectal cancer in the Czech Republic (37/100000 males, 20/100000 females) and Hungary. The highest breast cancer mortality rates were in Malta (30/100000 females), followed by Denmark and Britain, and for cancer of the prostate in Norway (23/100000), Switzerland and Sweden. With reference to total cancer mortality, the highest rates for males were in Hungary (262/100000), the Czech Republic (238/100000) and the Russian Federation (224/100000), and the lowest ones in Israel (127/100000), and Sweden (130/100000). In females, the highest total cancer mortality rates were in Denmark (142/100000), Scotland and Hungary, and the lowest ones in Greece (78/100000), France and Spain. These patterns of total cancer mortality for the two sexes reflect the major impact of tobacco-related neoplasms, and underline the substantial excess rates in most eastern European countries.