Mortality from selected cancers in NSW and Sydney, Australia

This study utilizes unit list mortality data for New South Wales, Australia in differential mortality analysis, at state and local levels, and examines geographic patterns of stomach, colo-rectum, respiratory system, female breast cancer and total cancer mortality in Sydney. Associations between manual occupations, low socioeconomic status and male stomach and respiratory cancer mortality were found, as were higher mortality from stomach and respiratory cancer among European-born immigrants in manual occupations. However, unexpected associations were also found between high mortality from stomach and respiratory cancers and managerial occupations. There were also more acute associations between colo-rectum and female breast cancer and higher status areas. Further, mortality variations between specific occupational groups occurred when marital status was controlled for, and the strongest variations were between married and never married males where the social isolation risk factors were presumed to be operative. The highest mortality at the local level in Sydney occurred where more than one at risk population resided and where other influences may have been operative.