Overall
By Sex
By Age Group
Cancer deaths data are derived from the Ontario Cancer Registry (OCR) operated by Cancer Care Ontario. The OCR contains information on Ontario residents who have died of all types of malignant cancers. Cancer sites were coded using the Third Edition of the International Classification of Diseases for Oncology (ICDO-3).
Overall
In 2018, 359 Simcoe Muskoka residents died of lung cancer for an age-standardized mortality rate of 49 (43.9, 54.3) deaths per 100,000 population. This was significantly higher than the Ontario lung cancer mortality rate of 43 (42.1, 45.3) deaths per 100,000. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in both Simcoe Muskoka and Ontario.
The chart below shows the trend in the lung cancer mortality rates in Simcoe Muskoka and Ontario over the 33 years from 1986 to 2018. Lung cancer mortality rates, both in Simcoe Muskoka and Ontario, decreased significantly over this period. The Simcoe Muskoka rates were above the Ontario rates over this entire period.
By Sex
In 2018, the age-standardized mortality rate for lung cancer among Simcoe Muskoka males was 52 (44.9, 60.9) deaths per 100,000, which was not significantly different from the female rate of 47 (40.2, 54.4) deaths per 100,000. The 2018 age-standardized lung cancer mortality rates for Ontario males was not significantly different from the comparable Simcoe Muskoka rate; however, the lung cancer mortality rate for females was significantly higher in Simcoe Muskoka when compared to the provincial average.
The chart below shows the trend in lung cancer mortality rates for males and females in Simcoe Muskoka from 1986 to 2018. The lung cancer mortality rates for males and females in Simcoe Muskoka demonstrated opposite trends over this period, with male rates declining significantly and female rates increasing significantly. The male lung cancer mortality rates were more than triple the females rates in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s and remained significantly higher than the female rates until the mid-2000’s; however, since 2008 the lung cancer mortality rates for males and females in Simcoe Muskoka have not differed significantly. This pattern can be explained by different long-term smoking trends for men and women over the past century, with smoking rates peaking in women in the late 1970’s, nearly 20 years after smoking rates peaked in men.
By Age Group
Lung cancer mortality increases significantly with age. The age-specific lung cancer mortality rates between 2010 and 2018 (combined) in Simcoe Muskoka were highest among those 75 years and older at 358 (339.1, 378.0) deaths per 100,000 population. The age-specific lung cancer mortality rates in Simcoe Muskoka were significantly higher than the comparable provincial rates for all age groups among adults 45 years of age and older.
The age-specific lung cancer mortality rates for Simcoe Muskoka males and females have demonstrated different patterns over the past quarter of a century. The male lung cancer mortality rates have declined significantly across all age groups for adults 45 years of age and older when comparing the period from 1986-1993 with the period from 2010-2018. Among Simcoe Muskoka females, lung cancer rates have not changed significantly for adults 45 to 74 years of age across these same time intervals; however, rates have increase significantly among females 75 years of age and older.
Page last updated June 7, 2022