Cancer Statistics for Japan

To the Editor: —Some of your readers may be interested in cancer statistics for Japan, which have recently reached me and which I have consolidated into the form of a five year average, for the period 1914-1918. For the empire of Japan the total mortality from cancer was 192,530, equivalent to a rate of 70.0 per hundred thousand. For males separately considered, the rate was 70.8, and for females, 69.2. This close conformity of the two sex rates would indicate a relatively high measure of accuracy in terminal diagnosis. For the city of Tokyo separately, and also for the period 1914-1918, there were 7,677 deaths from cancer among both sexes, equivalent to a rate of 79.6 per hundred thousand population. For males the rate was 81.4, and for females, 77.7. The excess rate for Tokyo, over the rate for Japan, is in conformity to general experience, and also supports the