TABLE 22
TWELVE LEADING CAUSES OF DEATH1
British Columbia, 1997-2001 and 2002
FIGURE 15
TWELVE LEADING CAUSES OF DEATH
British Columbia, 2002
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HIGHLIGHTS TO TABLE 22/FIGURE 15
- The twelve leading causes of death for British Columbia, presented in this table, are based on the categories most frequently queried at the Vital Statistics Agency. In recent years, cancers, cardiovascular disease and cerebrovascular disease have been the top three leading causes of death in the province, when ranked either by number of deaths or by age standardized mortality rates (ASMR). These three leading causes were responsible for almost sixty percent (59.3%) of the deaths in the province in 2002. The order of leading causes shown in this table is ranked by number of deaths.
- More than one in four deaths (27.7%) in the province in 2002 were due to cancer (7,940 deaths). The ASMR for cancer in 2002 was 15.70 deaths per 10,000 standard population, slightly lower than the five year (1997-2001) ASMR of 16.28.
- Cardiovascular disease was the second leading cause of death in 2002, accounting for almost one quarter (24.0%) of all deaths (6,893) with an ASMR of 12.39, a decrease from 14.30 for the 1997-2001 period.
- The third leading cause of death was cerebrovascular disease (2,183 deaths) causing one in thirteen deaths (7.6%). The 2002 ASMR for cerebrovascular disease (3.85) was slightly below the 1997-2001 ASMR (4.53).
- Chronic lung disease was the fourth leading cause of death in 2002 (1,257 deaths) with an ASMR of 2.31 deaths per 10,000 standard population. Chronic lung disease was the sixth leading cause of death in the 1997-2001 period with an ASMR of 2.40.
- Deaths from pneumonia/influenza were the fifth leading cause of death in 2002 (1,224 deaths). The 2002 ASMR for pneumonia/influenza was 2.07, slightly lower than the 1997-2001 ASMR of 2.54.
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