Cancer Is Now the Leading Cause of Death

Heart disease falls to second place as cause of death in developed countries

Cancer rates dropped as smoking fell out of fashion but the disease is now quickly outpacing heart disease as the top cause of death in higher income countries. ESB Professional/Shutterstock

Cancer has dethroned heart disease to earn the nefarious title of leading cause of death in high-income and certain middle-income countries.

While heart disease remains the No. 1 cause of death globally among adults aged 35 to 70, in high-income countries, which include Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Canada, and Sweden, cancer caused sometimes twice as many deaths as heart disease.