In 2017, diseases of the circulatory system decrease as initial causes of death

Statbel, the Belgian statistical office, publishes today the causes of death for 2017.

Despite a slight decrease of their relative importance, the diseases of the circulatory system (27.1 % of all causes of death) remain the leading cause of death, followed by tumours (25.8 %) and diseases of the respiratory system (11.2 %). This ranking remains the same in Flanders and Wallonia, but in Brussels, tumours become the first cause of death with 24.9 % of all causes, compared to 24.6 % for diseases of the circulatory system.

For men, tumours rank first (28.8 %) followed by diseases of the circulatory system (25.7 %), while for women, the national ranking is respected.