One in four deaths caused by cancer in EU: Eurostat

In the European Union (EU), cancer was the cause of death for almost 1.3 million persons in 2013, responsible for over a quarter of all deaths, according to data released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU, on Wednesday.

In addition, fatal cancer represented more than a third of all deaths for the EU population aged less than 65, while this level was below a quarter for the older population, those aged 65 years and over.

Leading to the death of nearly 270,000 persons, or 21 percent of all deaths due to cancer, lung cancer was the main type of fatal cancer in the EU in 2013, followed by colorectal cancer, breast cancer, pancreas cancer and prostate cancer.

Among the total population, cancer was the cause of at least 30 percent of deaths in Slovenia, the Netherlands and Ireland in 2013, while it represented less than a fifth of all causes of death in Bulgaria and Lithuania.

In every EU member state, fatal cancers killed more men than women, with the highest gender gaps being observed in Greece and Spain, followed by Bulgaria and Portugal.

Moreover, while it can also concern men, breast cancer primarily affects women, for which it represented in 2013 the most common fatal cancer, accounting for 16 percent of all deaths due to cancer among the female population in the EU. Endit