Cancer is now the leading cause of death among British men, superseding cardiovascular diseases, a research reveals. This is the first time that the said finding was noted after the mid-20th century.
The researchers discovered that the primary causes of mortalities in both men and women include cancer (29 percent) and cardiovascular disease (28 percent). The mortality rates noted for men alone were 32 percent for cancer and 29 percent for heart diseases. Cardiovascular diseases remain to be the leading cause of deaths among women.
The study published in the European Heart journal, shows that approximately 2.3 people residing in the U.K. in 2012 have a medical condition similar to that of coronary disease. The researchers also found that approximately 500,000 individuals were diagnosed with heart failure and 1.1 million had abnormal rhythm of the heart. The lowest rate of heart disease was recorded in England, probably due to economic and social factors. However, the rates in the north part of England were significantly greater than the incidence noted in London, South England and neighboring locations.
In the wealthiest parts of London, which are Chelsea and Kensington, less than 200 in 100,000 individuals succumb to cardiovascular diseases; this is lower in comparison to the data collated in Glasgow, which is 400 in 100,000.
Among the regions of Europe, Scotland and Wales were the two areas with the most types of heart diseases present. Stroke, coronary heart disease and peripheral vascular disease were most highly prevalent in Scotland while heart failure, hypertension and atrial fibrillation were most present in Wales. The weight of cardiovascular diseases may be reflected through the NHS record pertaining to the £7 billion costs spent for medical expenses, mostly hospital bills, due to heart problems from 2012-2013 in England alone.
The recent decline of fatalities due to cardiovascular diseases is one of the most significant milestones for public health in the last 50 years, says Dr. Adam Timmis from the NIHR Cardiovascular Biomedical Research Unit at Barts Health, London.
"If the national effort put into the detection of breast cancer could be matched in protecting young women against myocardial infarction [heart attacks] many more lives would probably be saved," says Timmis.
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