§ Mrs. Iris RobinsonTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of deaths were due to(a) respiratory disease, (b) heart disease and (c) cancer in each of the last three years. [176882]
§ Ruth KellyThe information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Colin Mowl to Mrs. Iris Robinson, dated 7 June 2004:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what percentage of deaths were due to (a) respiratory disease, (b) heart disease and (c) cancer in each of the last three years. I am replying in his absence. (176882)
The latest year for which data are available is 2002. Figures for all respiratory diseases, all circulatory diseases including ischaemic heart disease (otherwise known as coronary heart disease), and cancer are shown in the attached table for each year from 2000 to 2002.
Percentage of all deaths per calendar year by underlying cause of death1 and total number of deaths, England and Wales, 2000 to 20022 Percent, number of deaths Calendar year 2000 20013 20023 (a) Respiratory diseases 17.3 72.7 13.1 Circulatory diseases including 38.7 39.9 39.3 (b) Ischaemic heart disease 20.2 20.0 19.3 (c) Cancer 25.2 26.2 26.3 All deaths (=100 per cent.) 535,664 530,373 533,527 1 The cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD–9) for the year 2000, and the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD–10) for 2001 and 2002. The codes used are listed: Diseases of the respiratory system—ICD–9 460–519; ICD–10 J00–J99 Diseases of the circulatory system—ICD–9 390–459; ICD–10 I00–I99; Ischaemic heart disease—ICD–9 410–414; ICD–10120–125; Neoplasm's—ICD–9 140–239; ICD–10 C00–D48. 2 Figures are based on deaths occurring in each calendar year. 3The introduction of ICD–10 for coding cause of death in 2001 means that data for respiratory diseases, circulatory diseases and cancer are not completely comparable with data for years before this date. The data should therefore be interpreted with caution. The effect of the change in classification in 2001 on deaths from these causes is described in a report published in May 20021 and a more detailed analysis of the impact of ICD–10 in trends in circulatory disease mortality was published in May 20042. Sources: 1Office for National Statistics. Results of the ICD–10 bridge coding study, England and Wales, 1999. Health Statistics Quarterly 14 (2002), 75–83. 2Griffiths C, Brock A, Rooney C (2004). The impact of introducing ICD–10 on trends in mortality from circulatory diseases in England and Wales. Health Statistics Quarterly 22, 14–20.