Dickinson-Iron County Critical Health Indicators

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Cancer Deaths                                                                                           

What Is It?

Cancer refers to more than 100 different diseases, each characterized by the uncontrolled growth and spread of abnormal cells. The most common cancers in Michigan are lung cancer, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, and prostate cancer. Cancer deaths can be reduced by changes in lifestyle, such as quitting smoking or improving diet.

How are Dickinson and Iron Counties doing?

The three year average age-adjusted cancer death rate for Dickinson County was 111.4 and Iron County was 125.2 per 100,000 population per year. Cancer is the second leading cause of death in Dickinson and Iron Counties.

Cancer Deaths and Death Rates
Dickinson County Residents, 1997-2000

Three-Year Moving Averages
Year All Ages Age Under 50 Age 50 - 74 Age 75 and Older
Average
 Age-Adjusted
Rate		 Average
 Age-Specific
Rate		 Average
 Age-Specific
Rate		 Average
 Age-Specific
Rate
1998-2000 67.7 175.8 ±24.8   3.0 17.1 ±33.3   29.7 444.0 ±10.6   35.0 1,284.4 ±9.8  
1997-1999 64.7 169.3 ±24.4   3.3 18.8 ±31.6   28.0 421.4 ±10.9   33.3 1,237.8 ±10.0  
Note: The manner in which underlying cause of death is coded and classified was revised in 1999 to reflect changing medical opinion and practice. The comparability between classification schemes for this particular cause of death is high (1.01), meaning that the change should have little or no impact on the comparisons of mortality statistics over time.


Cancer Deaths and Death Rates
Iron County Residents, 1997-2000

Three-Year Moving Averages
Year All Ages Age Under 50 Age 50 - 74 Age 75 and Older
Average
 Age-Adjusted
Rate		 Average
 Age-Specific
Rate		 Average
 Age-Specific
Rate		 Average
 Age-Specific
Rate
1998-2000 45.3 194.2 ±35.2   2.3 33.0 ±37.8   20.7 519.1 ±12.7   22.3 1,251.2 ±12.2  
1997-1999 46.0 188.7 ±33.2   1.0 *    19.7 493.8 ±13.0   25.3 1,429.6 ±11.5  
Note: The manner in which underlying cause of death is coded and classified was revised in 1999 to reflect changing medical opinion and practice. The comparability between classification schemes for this particular cause of death is high (1.01), meaning that the change should have little or no impact on the comparisons of mortality statistics over time.


How is the State of Michigan doing?

Cancer is the second leading cause of all deaths in Michigan. It is also the leading cause of Years of Potential Life Lost (YPLL) for people below the age of 75.

In 1998, there were 19,442 deaths due to cancer in Michigan. The age-adjusted rate for cancer deaths was 125.3 per 100,000 population. The cancer death rate in Michigan has been declining during the past 10 years.

Michigan's 1997 age-adjusted cancer death rate of 126.9 was similar to the U.S. rate of 125.6. Cancer was the second leading cause of all deaths in the U.S. and the leading cause of YPLL in 1997.

How do Dickinson and Iron Counties compare with Michigan and the U.S.?

How are different populations affected?

In the year 2000, in Dickinson-Iron County, 42.9 percent of cancer deaths occurred to individuals aged 75 or older. Individuals ages 45 to 74 years accounted for 54.6 percent and under age 45, 2.5 percent of deaths due to cancer.

What are the most frequent types of cancers and their incidence rates?

Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of cancer. Other risk factors include high-fat and low-fiber diets, sedentary lifestyles, and environmental factors such as radon exposure.

Early detection, through mammograms, Pap smears, sigmoidoscopies, and digital rectal exams may lead to increased survival. Some physicians believe that the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test for men may also be helpful.

The table below lists the average number of new cases and the "incidence" rates over the past decade in five year intervals for the four leading causes of cancer deaths. The incidence trend is slightly higher over the past decade. Incidence rates for both prostate and breast cancer have generally increased over the past decade. Colon and rectum cancer incidence has dropped. Lung cancer incidence has dropped in men, but increased in women over the past decade. These trends are similar to the rest of the State of Michigan.

Cancer Incidence Trends - Dickinson-Iron County Residents, 1985-1997

Age-adjusted rate is incidence per 10,000 population. Rates are computed by the direct method, using as the standard population the age distribution of the total population of the United States as enumerated in 1970. Adding and subtracting the number shown after the ± symbol from the rate creates a confidence interval indicating that the true rate lies between the lower and upper bounds of this interval with 95 percent statistical confidence.