§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many deaths in people over 60 since 1997 were due to(a) cancer, (b) coronary heart disease and (c) falls; and if he will make a statement. [156647]
§ Ruth KellyI have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Paul Burstow, dated 2 March 2004:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many deaths in people aged over 60 since 1997 were due to (a) cancer, (b) coronary heart disease and (c) falls. (156647)
880WThe latest year for which data are available is 2002. Figures for cancer, ischaemic (otherwise known as coronary) heart disease and falls in persons aged over 60 are shown in the attached table for each year from 1997 to 2002.
Number of deaths from (a) cancer, (b) ischaemic heart disease, and (c) falls1 in persons aged over 602, England and Wales, 1997 to 20023 Calendar year (a) Cancer4 (b) Ischaemic heart disease (c) Falls5 1997 112,147 111,658 2,198 1998 112,678 110,425 2,112 1999 110,956 104,969 2,161 2000 109,564 98,862 2,460 20014 112,711 96,532 2,058 20024 113,552 93,578 1,967 1The cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) for the years 1997 to 2000, and the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) for 2001 and 2002. The codes used are listed below: Cancer—ICD-9 140–208; ICD-10 C00-C97; Ischaemic heart disease—ICD-9 410—414; ICD-10 120—125; Falls—ICD-9 E880-E888 excluding E887; ICD-10 W00-W19. 2Persons aged 61 years and over. 3Figures are based on deaths occurring in each calendar year. 4The introduction of ICD-10 for coding cause of death in 2001 means that data for 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 cancer is described in a report published in May 2002.* 5The data for falls for 1997 to 2000 exclude fractures of unspecified cause (1CD-9 E887), so data for these years are comparable to those for 2001 onwards. The effect of the change in classification in 2001 on deaths from falls is described in an article published in August 2003.* * Office for National Statistics. Results of the ICD-10 bridge coding study, England and Wales, 1999. "Health Statistics Quarterly" 14 (2002), 75ߝ83. ** Griffiths C and Rooney C. The effect of the introduction of ICD-l0 on mortality from injury and poisoning in England and Wales. "Health Statistics Quarterly" 19 (2003), 10ߝ21.