New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-04-16
THE INCREASE IN CANCER.

THE fNCkEASE IN CANOHhs
DR.. Roswell Park, of Buffalo, while deliver
ing an address in Berlin this week, made an
nllusion to the prevalence Of cancer which has
either been misunderstood or inaccurately re-
ported. He is represented as having said that
cancer is almost as common in the United
States as tuberculosis. This is a matter to
which Dr. Park has given much attention for
years, and he has made a special study Of the
conditions In New-York State, which IS sup
posed to lie in what is called the cancer belt"
Hence, ii does not seem credible that he IN
tended to convey tho impression which one
would derive from the language imputed TO
him.
1t appears from the statistics Of the State
Board Of Health for 1903, for instance, that
the total number of deaths last year from
cancer in New-Yorlr was 5.4JG. while the NOR
tality was considerably greater from each of
seven other diseases, not counting accidents,
violence and unclassifcd maladies. Acute re-
spiratoTy disorders" among which pneumonia
doubtless holds the chief place, are credited
with IL, 800 deaths, and tuberculosis with 3,194.
From the same source OF information. how
ever, one learns that there has been compare
lively little fuctUation Of late in the havoc
from most Of these causes. but that cancer is
on the increase. The deaths in 1903 due 10
cancer exceeded those of 1902 by nearly 900.
and exceeded the average for the previous
FIVE years by 6S4 These figures show, there
| fore, that the rise in mortality from can
Ger, to which DR.. Park called attention in the
pages OF the medical papers five years ago,
still continues. lie then predicted that II 1t
maintained long enough cancer would
rival tuberculosis. That time has not yet ar
rived but the steady increase for more than
a decade certainly justifes great uneasiness.
After ALL it is the ratio that tells the story.
Corrobora five Testimony yyoa offorpd ny
Frank G. Clemow, IN his Geography Of Dis
ease" which appeared last year. tie was dis
posed TO think that TO a limited extent pos
sibly, the gain was apparent rather than real.
In some measure ii might perhaps be attributed
to differences in diagnosis and registration be-
tween earlier and later periods, but 1t did not
seem probable TO him that any such expIana-
ton would fully account for the increase. The
phenomenon had been observed in several Euro
pean countries. 1t was especially notable in
the United Kingdom. Still, the most conspicr-
Gus rise, he declared, was on this side of the
Atlantic. AS to the main fact. therefore, there
can be little question. 1t has been recognized
too long and too widely to admit of mistake.
Medical men have at least two reasons for
regarding this situation with peculiar dismay
No altogether satisfactory method Of treat
ment for cancer has yet been found. In few
cases R6ntgen rays have afforded relief Per
maps rdQlun VIII some Gay prove uelpIuI. Sur
gerry Is the most efiicacious resource, but it IS
not always practicable, nor does It invariably
preclude a return Of the trouble The wisest
and most skilful members Of the profession are
almost powerless to fight cancer. Again, the
exact cause Of this disease-or, TO speak more
accurately, this group of diseases-has not yet
been determined. Every few months the al
legged discovery OF the cancer germ IS an
nOunced. The men who have been engaged
In tho hunt and who have thought that they
had achieved success have often had high
standing. One Of them, DR.. Gaylord, Is n fell
low tOwnsman of DR.. Park. Another is DR..
Schmidt, one OF the advisers of the Emperor
of Germany. In none Of these instances. how
ever, has the demonstration been complete and
convincing. An organism may be found which
is almost always an accompaniment Of the dis
eased tissue under examination. 1t will not
meet all the logical requirements prescribed
long ago by Koch, though, unless it be sepa-
rated from the human system. independently
cultivated and then employed to transmit dis
ease TO n healthy animal. AS final proof of
that kind is still lacking it is too soon to place
confidence in any OF these claims Eventually
it is reasonable to hope. the mysteries Of can
Ger will be revealed and an effective method
Of warfare viii be found, but to-day the doc
tors are sadly in the dark.