Evergreen Reporter

There were 125 deaths with cancer listed as the underlying cause reported in the state of Washington during the week ending April 9, 2022, a 18.8% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending April 9, 2022, there were 535 deaths in the state. 23.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 23.4% were from cancer and 1.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.2% of deaths were from Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Studies show doctors and medical examiners may underreport Alzheimer's disease and dementia-related conditions as the underlying cause of death on death certificates, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Once infected, older adults with dementia are likely to develop a more severe and dangerous illness. The diseases which make an older adult more vulnerable to COVID-19 are age-associated chronic conditions, according to the Bright Focus Foundation.

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending April 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 2, 2022
Heart disease	128	130
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	125	154
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	25	34
Alzheimer's disease	23	34
Cerebrovascular diseases	20	42
Diabetes mellitus	17	28
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	10	12
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	< 10
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending April 9, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending April 2, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	49	67