Cancer claims fewer lives in Netherlands

The number of people in the Netherlands dying of cancer is steadily decreasing. Over the past three decades, the number of cancer deaths in men decreased by a third, according to Statistics Netherlands. A steady decline in cancer deaths in women started in the 50's, though the decline is less significant due to an increase in women suffering from lung cancer. According to Statistics Netherlands, the significant decline in cancer deaths among men can mainly be attributed to a decrease in male lung cancer and stomach cancer patients. Lung cancer is still the most common type of cancer in men who die of the disease, though the proportion off men who die of lung cancer became much smaller - 38 percent in the late 80's to 26 percent last year. For the past decade, colon cancer was the second most common killer among men with cancer at 12 percent, followed closely by prostate cancer at 11 percent. Among women lung cancer is also the most common type of cancer to die from, followed by breast cancer. Until 2006, most female cancer patients died of breast cancer. The number of children that died of cancer remained relatively stable over he past years. Last year 69 kids between he ages of 0 and 14 died of cancer about the same number as in 2013 and 2014. Though before that the number of cancer deaths among children was significantly higher. In 2006 a total of 110 kids died of cancer. Between 2006 and 2015 a total of nearly 10 thousand children in the Netherlands died, 820 of who were cancer patients. Brain cancer claimed the most lives at 321 child deaths, followed by leukemia at 191 deaths. 447 boys died of cancer and 373 girls. Leukemia and lymphoma area 1.5 times more likely in boys than girls.