The following table gives the average cancer mortality from 1906 to 1910 per 100,000 in certain American cities:
| San Francisco | 102.5 |
| Boston | 99.4 |
| Providence | 96.9 |
| Los Angeles | 94.9 |
| Cincinnati | 93 |
| Hartford | 91.9 |
| New Haven | 89.8 |
| Dayton | 88.5 |
| Rochester | 88.2 |
| Springfield | 86.9 |
| District of Columbia | 86 |
| Baltimore | 85.8 |
| Omaha | 85.7 |
| Buffalo | 84 |
| New Orleans | 82.2 |
| Philadelphia | 81.9 |
| Hoboken | 80.7 |
| Columbus | 79.5 |
| Manhattan and Bronx | 78.4 |
| St. Louis | 78.4 |
| Denver | 77.9 |
| Newark | 76.9 |
| Chicago | 76.5 |
| Greater New York | 74.1 |
| Richmond | 73.9 |
| Kansas City, Mo | 71.1 |
| St. Paul | 71.1 |
| Indianapolis | 70.4 |
| Borough of Brooklyn | 68.9 |
| Milwaukee | 68.4 |
| Nashville | 68 |
| Pittsburgh | 66.4 |
| Minneapolis | 65.3 |
| Detroit | 64.5 |
| Cleveland | 62.9 |
| Louisville | 61.1 |
| Jersey City | 60.5 |
| Charleston | 53.6 |
| Seattle | 50.2 |
| Augusta (Ga.) | 49.1 |
| Memphis | 48.7 |
| Savannah | 47.1 |
In the city of New York, as given by the Board of Health Bulletin, there were from July 1, 1915, to June 30, 1916, 4,672 deaths from cancer, or an average of just 12.8 persons per day; in the last six months, July 1 to December 31, there were 2,264 deaths from cancer, 990 males and 1,274 females, with a daily average of a little higher than last year.
It is readily understood that many factors enter into the study and proper understanding of the statistics of cancer, such as age, sex, location of the lesion, etc., and the limits of a lecture do not permit any adequate presentation of the subject, but a few points may be mentioned.
Thus, in regard to age, the States which represented the greatest number of deaths from cancer, Vermont with 109.9 and Maine with 107.6, show that the proportion of individuals over 45 years of age was over 27 per cent, compared with 17.7 per cent for Kentucky and 16.2 per cent for Montana, which latter gave almost the lowest mortality from cancer.
The same is true somewhat in regard to sex, although sufficient data are not at hand to show the relative number of living males and females in the different States. We know, of course, that the great preponderance of cancer in females is due to that affecting the breast and uterus, and where females preponderate in the population the total cancer mortality would be the highest.
The location of the lesion has also a bearing upon the understanding of statistics. Thus in Norway, for some unexplained reason, cancer of the stomach caused the great mortality of 60 per cent (66.9 males, 52.9 females) of all cancer mortality, while cancer of the breast caused but 7.6 and of the uterus 16.2 per cent of the whole, the general rate being 93.9 per 100,000 inhabitants. In the United States, in 1914, cancer of the stomach and liver caused the deaths of 37.9, cancer of the breast 10, and cancer of the female genital organs 14.2 per cent of all deaths from cancer.
There are other points also to be taken under consideration in connection with cancer statistics which we cannot even touch on and can only mention one, namely, the physical condition; for the disease is known to be more frequent proportionately among the better nourished and well-to-do classes, etc.
Turning to other countries, we find abundant confirmation of the persistent and considerable increase in the mortality from cancer, in many cases much greater than has occurred in the United States; and in nearly all of them the increase can be recognized as commensurate with the progress or advance of so-called civilization, especially as emphasized in city life.
England and Wales afford us about the most satisfactory statistics in this regard. W. R. Williams has given a valuable table, already referred to in connection with food, showing the prevalence of cancer and its relative increase in England and Wales from 1840 to 1905. In 1840 the cancer death rate was 17.7 per 100,000 living, with a proportion of 1 to 129 of total deaths. The deaths from cancer increased with almost a perfect regularity until in 1905 there was a mortality of 88.5 per 100,000 living, and 1 in 17 of the total deaths was due to cancer, as against 1 to 129 in 1840. The total proportion of deaths from all causes is given for each year, and while the population has only a little more than doubled in these 65 years, the deaths from cancer have increased from 2,786 to 30,221, or over ten times the number; the rate of cancer deaths per 100,000 living had increased five times, while the ratio of deaths from cancer to total deaths had multiplied more than seven times. Since 1905 the cancer death rate in England and Wales has advanced to 99.3 per 100,000 in 1911, and to 105.5 in 1913, and in London the cancer mortality is 114.9 per 100,000 population.