TAIPEI, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Malignant tumors remained the leading cause of death in Taiwan in 2018, according to the latest statistics from the island's interior affairs authority.
Last year the average life expectancy in Taiwan was 80.69 years, which would have been raised to 84.63 years after excluding deaths caused by malignant tumors, the data showed.
Malignant tumors have been the leading cause of death in Taiwan for the past 37 years and claimed over 27 percent of the total deaths in recent years. Heart disease has been the number two cause of death on the island for the past 11 years.
The authority attributed the rising number of deaths caused by malignant tumors to factors including smoking, a poor diet, living environment and stress at work.
Pneumonia was the third leading cause of death in Taiwan last year and has caused more than 7 percent of deaths on the island for three consecutive years.
