[Cancer epidemiology in France in 2010, comparison with the USA].

In 2007, a total number of 149,000 cancer deaths were observed in France, 89,100 in the male population and 60,600 in the female population, and in 2009, the number of new diagnoses of cancer is estimated to be 346,500, 197,500 among men and 149,000 among women. The most frequent cancers are prostate, lung and colorectal cancers in men, and breast, colorectal and lung cancers in women. Cancer mortality is higher in France than in the USA for men and lower for women. The largest differences between the two countries are observed for lung cancer and for head and neck (mouth, pharynx, larynx and oesophagus) cancers in men. Lung cancer mortality is higher in the USA than in France for men and much higher for women. These differences are explained by the difference in past tobacco consumption. For head and neck cancers in men, despite a very large decrease in France due mostly to the reduction in alcohol consumption, mortality remains today higher in France than in the USA.