MALIGNANT NEOPLASMS IN THE JAPANESE COMMUNITY OF HISAYAMA - MORTALITYAND CHANGING PATTERN DURING A 30-YEAR OBSERVATION PERIOD BASED ON A CONSECUTIVE AUTOPSY SERIES

To obtain a relatively true mortality from malignant neoplasms, we stu died the frequency of cancers in the different sites and the changing patterns of the frequency and sites over time among residents of the c ommunity of Hisayama, where an autopsy based population survey (autops y rate, 80%) has been conducted since 1961. During the 30-year period from 1962 to 1991, we found 438 malignant neoplasms in 407 cases among 1,250 consecutive autopsies. Stomach cancer was most frequent in type of cancer, with 123 cases (9.8%), followed by lung cancer in 62 (5.0% ), colorectal cancer in 42 (3.4%), liver cancer in 37 (3.0%), and panc reatic cancer in 30 (2.4%). We compared the mortality from cancers for both autopsy and nonautopsy cases (the proportional mortality) among three 10-year periods, which included early (1962 to 1971), middle (19 72 to 1981), and late (1982 to 1991) periods. The proportional mortali ty from all cancers, as well as for lung, colorectal, and liver cancer s, showed an increase in recent years, while stomach and pancreatic ca ncer showed a decrease. These figures were nearly similar to the morta lity statistics for the Japanese population as a whole except for the observed decreasing trend in mortality from pancreatic cancer.