Seven of the top 10 causes of death in Taipei last year were chronic diseases, with cancer leading the list for the 49th consecutive year, the Taipei Department of Health said on Monday.
A total of 17,196 people died in the capital last year, 4.6 percent fewer than in 2019, representing a ratio of 655.4 people for every 100,000.
The median age of death was 80, older than the national average of 77, the department said.
Taipei had the second-lowest standardized mortality rate in the nation after Kinmen County, it said.
The rate, which compares the observed number of deaths in a year with the expected number, was 289.6 deaths per 100,000 people, compared with the national average of 390.8.
Figures for men were higher than women in every metric, including the number and rate of deaths, although the top five causes of death were the same for both, the health department data showed.
The top 10 causes of death comprised 78 percent of all fatalities in Taipei last year, led by cancer (29.9 percent), heart disease (16.3 percent), pneumonia (9.1 percent), cerebrovascular disease (6 percent) and diabetes (4.3 percent).
Kidney-related diseases such as nephritis, chronic lower respiratory diseases, hypertension, accidental injury and suicide each accounted for less than 3 percent of deaths.
Hypertension climbed two spots from the year before to No. 8, while suicide rose one spot to No. 10 and accidental injury dropped a spot to No. 9.
Last year, 5,146 Taipei residents died of cancer at an average age of 72.4, or 14 people every day on average, the department said.
Tracheal, bronchial and lung cancers were the most deadly, leading the list for the 35th consecutive year, it said.
Next were breast, colorectal, liver, prostate, pancreatic, stomach, ovarian and oral cancers, as well as non-Hodgkin lymphoma in that order, it added.
Ovarian cancer climbed two places from the previous year to No. 8, while oral cancer and non-Hodgkin lymphoma each fell one place, it said.
The standardized mortality rates of ovarian, prostate and breast cancers were all higher than the previous year, it added.
Deaths among young people aged 15 to 24 differed slightly, as the most common cause was suicide (28.4 percent), followed by accidental injury (25.7 percent) and cancer (9.5 percent), the data showed.
Suicide was the third-highest cause among those aged 25 to 44, accounting for 14.1 percent of deaths, after cancer (28.2 percent) and heart disease (14.5 percent), data showed.
Cancer and heart disease were the top two killers of people aged 45 to 64 and those older than 65, while cerebrovascular disease was third among deaths of middle-aged people and pneumonia accounted for the third-most deaths in old age.
To minimize the chances of contracting the nation’s biggest killer, the department advised eating a healthy diet, regular exercise and refraining from smoking cigarettes and chewing betel nut.
Sexually active women older than 30 are also encouraged to undergo a free annual Pap smear, the department added.
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