Cancer Remains Leading Cause of Death in Taipei City in 2025, Increasing by 220 Cases

The Taipei City Department of Health today released the 2025 statistics on the city's top 10 causes of death. Cancer ranked first, causing 5,599 deaths, accounting for 28.6% of all deaths—marking the 53rd consecutive year since 1973 (Minguo Year 62) that cancer has topped the list. Compared to 5,379 cancer deaths (27.3%) in 2024, this represents an increase of 220 deaths and a 1.3-percentage-point rise in share.

Total deaths in Taipei City in 2025 amounted to 19,601, a decrease of 133 from 19,734 in 2024, representing a 0.7% decline.

Among cancers, lung cancer remained the leading cause for the 40th consecutive year, resulting in 1,117 deaths in 2025—about 20% of all cancer deaths. The lung cancer mortality rate stood at 45.3 per 100,000 people. Colorectal cancer mortality increased by 9.4% compared to 2024, while pancreatic cancer mortality rose by 27.4%, showing the most significant increase. In contrast, female breast cancer mortality decreased by 7.9%.

The remaining leading causes of death were as follows: 2nd—heart disease (excluding hypertensive diseases), 3rd—pneumonia, 4th—cerebrovascular diseases, 5th—diabetes, 6th—chronic lower respiratory diseases, 7th—hypertensive diseases, 8th—nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and renal diseases, 9th—accidental injuries, and 10th—vascular and unspecified dementia.

Age-standardized mortality rates declined for heart disease, pneumonia, cerebrovascular diseases, diabetes, chronic lower respiratory diseases, hypertensive diseases, accidental injuries, and dementia, indicating that chronic disease prevention and healthcare interventions are having sustained positive effects. However, the age-standardized mortality rate for nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and renal diseases increased, warranting closer attention.

The crude mortality rate in 2025 was 795.1 per 100,000 people (788.9 in 2024). The age-standardized mortality rate was 295.5 per 100,000 (307.4 in 2024), a 3.9% decrease. This indicates that, after adjusting for population aging, the overall risk of death in Taipei City continues to decline.