Leading causes of death

This section looks at the most common causes of death in the SDHU area. They are mostly related to chronic diseases, which is consistent with causes of death in all developed nations. It also looks at which diseases result in more deaths before the age of 75, or causing the most “years of life lost”.

The data are presented in two different ways: 1) with different types of cancers shown separately, and 2) with all cancers grouped as a single category.

• by geographic area
• potential years of life lost (PYLL) by geographic area
• all cancers combined by geographic area
• potential years of life lost (all cancers combined) by geographic area

Leading causes of death by geographic area

Key findings:

• The two most common causes of death in the Sudbury & District Health Unit (SDHU) area between 2002 and 2011 have been ischemic heart disease (heart attack) and lung cancer, with ischemic heart disease causing 19% of deaths and lung cancer causing 9% of deaths.
• Between 2002 and 2011, on average 329 people died of ischemic heart disease and 157 people died of lung cancer each year in the SDHU area.
• The percentage of deaths from both ischemic heart disease and lung cancer in the SDHU area is higher than the percentage of deaths by these diseases in Ontario.

Notes:

• Data Source: Mortality Data and Population Estimates and Projections, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, IntelliHEALTH Ontario, Extracted April 2015.

Figure: Percentage (%) of deaths from leading causes, by geographic area, 2002-2011

Table: Percentage (%) of deaths from leading causes, by geographic area, 2002-2011

Rank	Leading Cause	SDHU	Northeast Ontario	Ontario
1	Ischeamic Heart Disease	19.2	18.9	17.2
2	Lung Cancer	9.0	8.8	7.4
3	Stroke	5.0	5.3	6.4
4	Dementia & Alzheimer Disease	5.0	5.3	6.1
5	Chronic Respiratory Disease	4.7	5.2	4.2
6	Diabetes	3.9	4.0	3.6
7	Colorectal Cancer	3.6	3.6	3.7
8	Cancers of the Lymph & Blood	2.9	2.8	2.9
9	Uninary Disease	2.4	2.0	2.1
10	Influenza & Pneumonia	1.8	1.8	2.3

Table: Number of deaths from leading causes, by geographic area, 2002-2011

Rank	Leading Cause	SDHU	Northeast Ontario	Ontario
1	Ischeamic Heart Disease	3290	9877	145979
2	Lung Cancer	1547	4579	62566
3	Stroke	864	2770	54258
4	Dementia & Alzheimer Disease	853	2742	51869
5	Chronic Respiratory Disease	807	2708	35310
6	Diabetes	661	2089	30483
7	Colorectal Cancer	614	1897	31226
8	Cancers of the Lymph & Blood	492	1471	24628
9	Uninary Disease	410	1061	18235
10	Influenza & Pneumonia	314	934	19797

Leading causes of potential years of life lost by geographic area

Key findings:

• Between 2002 and 2011, ischemic heart disease (heart attack), lung cancer, and suicide resulted in the largest number of potential years of life lost (PYLL) in the SDHU area.
• Ischemic heart disease caused 12% of PYLL, lung cancer caused 9% of PYLL, and suicide accounted for 6% of PYLL.
• On average, between 2002 and 2011, early death from ischemic heart disease resulted in 1,453 PYLL, lung cancer resulted in 1,073 PYLL, and suicide accounted for 754 PYLL each year.
• The percentage of PYLL caused by ischemic heart disease, lung cancer, and suicide in the SDHU area is higher than in Ontario overall.

Notes:

• Data Source: Mortality Data and Population Estimates and Projections, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, IntelliHEALTH Ontario, Extracted April 2015.

Figure: Percentage (%) of potential years of life lost (PYLL) from leading causes, by geographic area, 2002-2011

Table: Percentage (%) of potential years of life lost (PYLL) from leading causes, by geographic area, 2002-2011

Rank	Leading Cause	SDHU	Northeast Ontario	Ontario
1	Ischeamic Heart Disease	12.1	12.0	10.2
2	Lung Cancer	9.0	8.7	7.6
3	Suicide	6.3	7.1	5.9
4	Transport Injuries	5.2	5.3	4.6
5	Perinatal Conditions	3.7	3.4	5.8
6	Accidental Poisoning	3.5	3.1	2.7
7	Liver Disease	3.3	2.8	2.8
8	Birth Defects	3.2	3.1	3.3
9	Colorectal Cancer	3.1	3.2	3.4
10	Diabetes	3.0	3.1	2.7

Table: Number of potential years of life lost (PYLL) from leading causes, by geographic area, 2002-2011

Rank	Leading Cause	SDHU	Northeast Ontario	Ontario
1	Ischeamic Heart Disease	14529	42458	543169
2	Lung Cancer	10726	30739	406771
3	Suicide	7540	25290	316578
4	Transport Injuries	6249	18785	246591
5	Perinatal Conditions	4425	12225	311511
6	Accidental Poisoning	4223	11150	146480
7	Liver Disease	3957	10016	150973
8	Birth Defects	3804	11150	175676
9	Colorectal Cancer	3664	11383	179452
10	Diabetes	3576	10856	141279

Leading causes of death (all cancers combined) by geographic area

Key findings:

• When all cancers are grouped together, it is by far the most common cause of death in the SDHU area.  Between 2002 and 2011, 31% of local deaths were due to cancer.  Ischemic heart disease (heart attack) caused 19% of deaths.
• Between 2002 and 2011, on average 527 people died of cancer and 329 people died of ischemic heart disease each year.
• The percentage of deaths from ischemic heart disease is higher in the SDHU area than it is in Ontario.

Notes:

• Data Source: Mortality Data and Population Estimates and Projections, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, IntelliHEALTH Ontario, Extracted April 2015.

Figure: Percentage (%) of deaths from leading causes (all cancers combined), by geographic area, 2002-2011

Table: Percentage of deaths from leading causes of death (all cancers combined), by geographic area, 2002-2011 – All cancers combined

Rank	Leading Cause	SDHU	Northeast Ontario	Ontario
1	Cancer	30.8	30.5	30.5
2	Ischeamic Heart Disease	19.2	18.9	17.2
3	Stroke	5.0	5.3	6.4
4	Dementia & Alzheimer Disease	5.0	5.3	6.1
5	Chronic Respiratory Disease	4.7	5.2	4.2
6	Diabetes	3.9	4.0	3.6
7	Uninary Disease	2.4	2.0	2.1
8	Influenza & Pneumonia	1.8	1.8	2.3
9	Liver Disease	1.7	1.5	1.4
10	Suicide	1.6	1.5	1.3

Table: Number of deaths from leading causes (all cancers combined), by geographic area, 2002-2011

Rank	Leading Cause	SDHU	Northeast Ontario	Ontario
1	Cancer	5273	15902	259265
2	Ischeamic Heart Disease	3290	9877	145979
3	Stroke	864	2770	54258
4	Dementia & Alzheimer Disease	853	2742	51869
5	Chronic Respiratory Disease	807	2708	35310
6	Diabetes	661	2089	30483
7	Uninary Disease	410	1061	18235
8	Influenza & Pneumonia	314	934	19797
9	Liver Disease	299	807	12102
10	Suicide	268	807	10778

Leading causes of potential years of life lost (all cancers combined) by geographic area

Key findings:

• The most common causes of potential years of life lost (PYLL) in the SDHU area between 2002 and 2011 was cancer, which accounted for 31% of PYLL. Ischemic heart disease (heart attack) caused 12% of PYLL during that period.
• On average between 2002 and 2011, cancer resulted in 3,743 PYLL each year.
• The percentage of PYLL from cancer in the SDHU area is lower than in Ontario overall.

Notes:

• Data Source: Mortality Data and Population Estimates and Projections, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, IntelliHEALTH Ontario, Extracted April 2015.

Figure: Percentage (%) of potential years of life lost (PYLL) from leading causes (all cancers combined), by geographic area, 2002-2011

Table: Percentage (%) of potential years of life lost (PYLL) from leading causes (all cancers combined), by geographic area, 2002-2011

Rank	Leading Cause	SDHU	Northeast Ontario	Ontario
1	Cancer	31.3	30.9	33.8
2	Ischeamic Heart Disease	12.1	12.0	10.2
3	Suicide	6.3	7.1	5.9
4	Transport Injuries	5.2	5.3	4.6
5	Perinatal Conditions	3.7	3.4	5.8
6	Accidental Poisoning	3.5	3.1	2.7
7	Liver Disease	3.3	2.8	2.8
8	Birth Defects	3.2	3.1	3.3
9	Diabetes	3.0	3.1	2.7
10	Stroke	2.6	2.6	2.6

 Table: Number of potential years of life lost (PYLL) from leading causes (all cancers combined), by geographic area, 2002-2011

Rank	Leading Causes	SDHU	Northeast Ontario	Ontario
1	Cancer	37425	109758	1801942
2	Ischeamic Heart Disease	14529	42458	543169
3	Suicide	7540	25290	316578
4	Transport Injuries	6249	18785	246591
5	Perinatal Conditions	4425	12225	311511
6	Accidental Poisoning	4223	11150	146480
7	Liver Disease	3957	10016	150973
8	Birth Defects	3804	11150	175676
9	Diabetes	3576	10856	141279
10	Stroke	3097	9120	137611

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This item was last modified on March 26, 2018