Cancer mortality among patients in New York mental hospitals

Data were obtained on 3365 patients in hospitals of the New York State Department of Mental Hygiene who died between 1955 and 1961 with malignant neoplasm as the primary cause of death. Comparisons were made with corresponding mortality rates for cancer in New York State for the same period. The total cancer mortality of mental patients from cancer was much higher than in similar age and sex groups of the general population of the state; however, most of the excess mortality among the patients was due to the high rates among those with short periods of hospitalization. Patients with 10 or more years of hospital stay had lower cancer rates than the general population, particularly among those 65 years of age or older. The lower mortality may be due to nonspecific environmental factors associated with long periods of hospitalization.