[Current trends in lung cancer mortality in France]

Lung cancer is the first cause of death from cancer in males in France. This cancer is responsible for 19,000 deaths in males and 3,000 deaths in females. We studied the geographical and temporal variations in lung cancer mortality in France. The average increase in mortality clearly decreased in males, changing from 2.4% between 1971 and 1985 to 0.7% between 1985 and 1992. In females, this tendency is reversed. Even though the rates were stable and very low before 1971, we have since observed a progressive increase which has intensified during the past years. Thus the average annual increase changed from 1.5% between 1971 and 1985 to 3% between 1985 and 1992. The geographic comparisons between the two studied periods (1971-78 and 1987-92) showed important differences between males and females. The geographic disparities among males were stable between these two periods. The excess observed mortality rate was maintained in the north-east. Among females, few geographic variations were observed during the first period. The second period however, showed distinct excess mortality rates in urban areas and large conglomerations as compared to the rest of France. In summary, the increase in the mortality rates for lung cancer is more pronounced in females and seems to have diminished in males, particularly in urban areas. This tendency started in the 1980s.