The following table shows a list of diseases and related deaths in developed countries in 2012. The table is based on mortality statistics provided by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Please note that the list only accounts for the deaths caused by diseases. Other causes of death, such as intentional and unintentional accidents, are excluded from the calculations.
Of overall death causes in developed countries, accidents account for 6% of total deaths (94% are caused by disease).
| Disease | Number of deaths in 2012 | % of total deaths |
|---|---|---|
| Ischaemic heart disease | 2,516,263 | 20.2 |
| Stroke | 1,405,447 | 11.3 |
| Other circulatory diseases | 780,761 | 6.3 |
| Trachea, bronchus, lung cancers | 647,307 | 5.2 |
| Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias | 540,331 | 4.3 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | 413,018 | 3.3 |
| Other malignant neoplasms | 405,780 | 3.3 |
| Lower respiratory infections | 371,678 | 3 |
| Colon and rectum cancers | 364,459 | 2.9 |
| Other digestive diseases | 294,067 | 2.4 |
| Hypertensive heart disease | 289,806 | 2.3 |
| Diabetes mellitus | 232,766 | 1.9 |
| Other respiratory diseases | 217,623 | 1.7 |
| Breast cancer | 215,640 | 1.7 |
| Cirrhosis of the liver | 213,993 | 1.7 |
| Self-harm | 190,397 | 1.5 |
| Pancreas cancer | 188,700 | 1.5 |
| Other unintentional injuries | 188,185 | 1.5 |
| Stomach cancer | 187,552 | 1.5 |
| Kidney diseases | 178,747 | 1.4 |
| Prostate cancer | 157,657 | 1.3 |
| Cardiomyopathy, myocarditis, endocarditis | 150,234 | 1.2 |
| Lymphomas, multiple myeloma | 139,276 | 1.1 |
| Liver cancer | 125,966 | 1 |
| Falls | 118,864 | 1 |
| Other infectious diseases | 115,759 | 0.9 |
| Road injury | 111,490 | 0.9 |
| Leukaemia | 100,858 | 0.8 |
| Endocrine, blood, immune disorders | 97,054 | 0.8 |
| HIV/AIDS | 96,773 | 0.8 |
| Bladder cancer | 88,583 | 0.7 |
| Oesophagus cancer | 78,210 | 0.6 |
| Other neurological conditions | 76,625 | 0.6 |
| Other neoplasms | 76,393 | 0.6 |
| Parkinson’s disease | 74,693 | 0.6 |
| Mouth and oropharynx cancers | 69,860 | 0.6 |
| Ovary cancer | 66,645 | 0.5 |
| Alcohol use disorders | 65,304 | 0.5 |
| Other genitourinary diseases | 62,614 | 0.5 |
| Melanoma and other skin cancers | 55,452 | 0.4 |
| Drug use disorders | 45,979 | 0.4 |
| Interpersonal violence | 43,427 | 0.3 |
| Other musculoskeletal disorders | 39,121 | 0.3 |
| Drowning | 38,211 | 0.3 |
| Corpus uteri cancer | 37,711 | 0.3 |
| Cervix uteri cancer | 37,482 | 0.3 |
| Tuberculosis | 37,063 | 0.3 |
| Diarrhoeal diseases | 35,944 | 0.3 |
| Peptic ulcer disease | 35,035 | 0.3 |
| Poisonings | 33,820 | 0.3 |
| Rheumatic heart disease | 33,125 | 0.3 |
| Fire, heat and hot substances | 24,929 | 0.2 |
| Preterm birth complications | 22,890 | 0.2 |
| Acute hepatitis C | 20,747 | 0.2 |
| Asthma | 19,056 | 0.2 |
| Congenital heart anomalies | 17,520 | 0.1 |
| Skin diseases | 17,237 | 0.1 |
| Epilepsy | 16,165 | 0.1 |
| Other congenital anomalies | 15,074 | 0.1 |
| Multiple sclerosis | 12,151 | 0.1 |
| Rheumatoid arthritis | 11,453 | 0.1 |
| Protein-energy malnutrition | 10,689 | 0.1 |
| Iron-deficiency anaemia | 10,040 | 0.1 |
| Other mental and behavioural disorders | 8,873 | 0.1 |
| Birth asphyxia and birth trauma | 5,992 | 0 |
| Other neonatal conditions | 5,858 | 0 |
| Meningitis | 3,889 | 0 |
| Appendicitis | 3,800 | 0 |
| Down’s syndrome | 3,767 | 0 |
| Eating disorders | 3,761 | 0 |
| Schizophrenia | 3,600 | 0 |
| Acute hepatitis B | 3,378 | 0 |
| Other chromosomal anomalies | 3,262 | 0 |
| Unipolar depressive disorders | 3,248 | 0 |
| Back and neck pain | 3,198 | 0 |
| Osteoarthritis | 2,816 | 0 |
| Neonatal sepsis and infections | 2,577 | 0 |
| Maternal conditions | 2,438 | 0 |
| Hyperplasia of prostate | 2,325 | 0 |
| Other nutritional deficiencies | 1,842 | 0 |
| Neural tube defects | 1,777 | 0 |
| Urolithiasis | 1,770 | 0 |
| Collective violence and legal intervention | 1,766 | 0 |
| Idiopathic intellectual disability | 1,363 | 0 |
| Encephalitis | 1,039 | 0 |
| Dental caries | 918 | 0 |
| Upper respiratory infections | 859 | 0 |
| Gynecological diseases | 819 | 0 |
| Bipolar disorder | 642 | 0 |
| Rabies | 609 | 0 |
| Other STDs | 509 | 0 |
| Gout | 347 | 0 |
| Whooping cough | 324 | 0 |
| Dengue | 278 | 0 |
| Syphilis | 206 | 0 |
| Otitis media | 201 | 0 |
| Tetanus | 84 | 0 |
| Cleft lip and cleft palate | 83 | 0 |
| Malaria | 72 | 0 |
| Iodine deficiency | 56 | 0 |
| Measles | 55 | 0 |
| Anxiety disorders | 52 | 0 |
| Leishmaniasis | 45 | 0 |
| Glaucoma | 27 | 0 |
| Periodontal disease | 22 | 0 |
| Diphtheria | 17 | 0 |
| Chlamydia | 11 | 0 |
| Gonorrhoea | 11 | 0 |
| Chagas disease | 9 | 0 |
| Schistosomiasis | 9 | 0 |
| Leprosy | 8 | 0 |
| Migraine | 7 | 0 |
| Other hearing loss | 6 | 0 |
| Cataracts | 6 | 0 |
| Vitamin A deficiency | 2 | 0 |
| Onchocerciasis | 1 | 0 |
| Refractive errors | 0 | 0 |
| Ascariasis | 0 | 0 |
| Hookworm disease | 0 | 0 |
| Lymphatic filariasis | 0 | 0 |
| Childhood behavioural disorders | 0 | 0 |
| Edentulism | 0 | 0 |
| Exposure to forces of nature | 0 | 0 |
| Infertility | 0 | 0 |
| Macular degeneration | 0 | 0 |
| Non-migraine headache | 0 | 0 |
| other sense organ disorders | 0 | 0 |
| Other vision loss | 0 | 0 |
| Pervasive developmental disorders | 0 | 0 |
| Trachoma | 0 | 0 |
| Trichomoniasis | 0 | 0 |
| Trichuriasis | 0 | 0 |
| Trypanosomiasis | 0 | 0 |
Number of deaths caused by diseases in 2012 in developed countries.
Data taken from the World Health Organization statistics report for 2012
The following image shows the top 20 disease-related causes of death in the world.
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