Pelican State News

There were 170 deaths with cancer listed as the underlying cause reported in Louisiana during the week ending May 29, 2021, a 8.3% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending May 29, 2021, there were 807 deaths in the state. 26% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.1% were from cancer and 9.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 6.8% 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 May 29, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 22, 2021
Heart disease	210	220
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	170	157
Cerebrovascular diseases	46	50
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	42	33
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	38	29
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	35	39
Alzheimer's disease	26	30
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	22	25
Diabetes mellitus	20	31
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending May 29, 2021	Deaths in Week Ending May 22, 2021
Alzheimer disease and dementia	55	51