What do Americans aged 45 to 54 die of most often?
In the 12 months through June 2025, cancer (79.6 deaths per 100,000 people aged 45 to 54) and heart disease (72.0) were the leading causes of death in this age group, followed by unintentional injuries (57.9). Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis came fourth, at 20.4. The numbers are provisional.
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Key facts
Measure: Deaths per 100,000 people aged 45 to 54 in a year. Written from the data below.
- Cancer has the highest figure, 79.6, followed by Heart disease (72) and Unintentional injuries (57.9).
- Influenza and pneumonia and Homicide share the lowest figure, 5.8.
- The highest is 14 times the lowest.
Source and date
- Data as of
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Citation
Chartly. “What do Americans aged 45 to 54 die of most often?” Chart. Data: CDC National Center for Health Statistics, Quarterly provisional estimates of mortality, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/mortality-dashboard.htm (data as of June 30, 2025). https://chart.ly/charts/causes-of-death-ages-45-to-54 (accessed October 15, 2026).
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The data
Download data (CSV)The file has the numbers in this table, with the source, license and date. Please credit the source and Chartly.
| Cause of death | Deaths per 100,000 people aged 45 to 54 in a year |
|---|---|
| Cancer | 79.6 |
| Heart disease | 72 |
| Unintentional injuries | 57.9 |
| Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis | 20.4 |
| Suicide | 18.7 |
| Diabetes | 16 |
| Stroke | 12.6 |
| Chronic lower respiratory diseases | 6.2 |
| Homicide | 5.8 |
| Influenza and pneumonia | 5.8 |
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