Great Lakes Wire

There were 271 deaths with cancer listed as the underlying cause reported in Michigan during the week ending April 2, 2022, a 11.5% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending April 2, 2022, there were 1,257 deaths in the state. 24.3% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.6% were from cancer and 5.2% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.3% 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 2, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 26, 2022
Heart disease	305	327
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	271	243
Cerebrovascular diseases	65	82
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	62	64
Alzheimer's disease	53	60
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	40	61
Diabetes mellitus	36	41
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	27	28
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	25	36
Influenza and pneumonia	14	12

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending April 2, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending March 26, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	117	123