Cancer Death Rates Among 50 Countries

Lung

1986-88 Age-adjusted Death Rates per 100,000 Population, Male and Female

U.S. males rank 12th in lung cancer mortality, and females rank 4th. Generally, lung cancer mortality rates for men are substantially higher than those for women. In many countries, there is a seven-fold male-to-female difference in lung cancer mortality. For Iceland, the exception, rates for males and females are similar. Belgium has the highest lung cancer mortality rate for males; Scotland has the second highest for males and the highest for females. Deaths from lung cancer are relatively rare in Mexico and Central and South America. Within the United States, there is considerable variation in mortality by geographic area. For males, the highest mortality rates are in the South; for females, the highest rates are on the West Coast, Maine, Nevada, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Maryland.