THE PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS. DR. FELL ON CANCER.

Evening Post, Volume LV, Issue 63, 16 March 1898, Page 2

THE PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS. DR. FELL ON CANCER.

At the evening sitting, Dr. Fell delivered his Presidential address, which mainly dealt with the question of cancer. After congratulating the profession upon its union with the British Medical Association, Dr. Pell entered upon his subject. Cancer had, he said, for some years attracted a great deal of attention in the colonie?, and it shared with consumption in the fears of the people, many of whom held that cancer was on the increase. He believed this would be the case in a pronounced degree were it not for cures effected by operations. A return placed at his disposal by our RegistrarGeneral showed the death-rate from the disease in New Zealand per 10,000 living at each age period as follows: — DEATHS FEOM CANCER.

According to this table the male rates showed a continuous and astonishing increase ; the proportion of male deaths to every 10,000 living between the ages of 50 and 60 having actually doubled within the last 15 years. It was 11*10 in 1881 and 22-00 in 1896. The proportion of females' deaths show a considerable but rather erratic increase. This difference, the President thought, admitted of an explanation which had escaped the notice of the statisticians. From the ages 40-50 females were most prone to malignant disease of the breast and of uteri, and during that period the mortality returns for females showed only a slight increase, which was proof, not that there was only a slight increase in cancer cases at that age period, but of the success which now attended operations on the breast and uteri, which had largely reduced the mortality in these cases. On the other hand, the cancerous affections of males were in much larger proportion internal and inoperable, and consequently fewer cases were cured by operations—hence more deaths. Cancer in New Zealand alone claimed today a death-rate of about 380 per annum, or more than one for every day in the year. New Zealand statistics, short as the period they covered, showed a decided increase in the deaths from cancer. From 1880 to 1884 the deaths were 781; from 1890 to 1894 they were 1637, or considerably more than double, while the population in the meantime had increased less than one-third. In 1881 the deaths from cancer per 10,000 living were 2*69. In 1895 they were 5*53. .But it should be remembered that the population had during this period increased not in numbers only, but in age, and cancer being a disease of mature life an increase in the number of deaths from this cause was to be expected. Dr. Ewart had informed him that 54 cases had been operated upon in the Wellington Hospital, and of these 22 had left the Hospital cured, so far as the authorities knew. Dr. Fell then devoted some time to a review of authorities on the subject, combatting some of the contentions aud statistics. What, he asked, had led to the generally accepted increase in this disease? Was it the result of modern habits or was it due to infected meats? At present this was a riddle, in the solving of which many keen brains and enthusiastic students were engaged. They had all so far met with an unknown something, to which they could not give -a name. Some day the riddle would be solved, aud then would come greater power to cope with the disease. There was a growing acknowledgement that while the power of preventing disease was unlimited, their power of curing was very limited, and the progress of medicine had been imDeded for ages by the false notion that

the doctor's only mission was to heal and cure diseui-e. But prevention was better than cure. Coming back to his sones of cancercause questions, the President expressed the thought that there was nothing in our modern life which could fairly be said to cause cancer. He believed that diseases were constantly altering in type, and he went on to quote experiences and observations, and in conclusion detailed tbe various treatments which the disease had received. Dr. Fell sat down amidst hearty applause. On the motion of Drx. Mackie and Ikrnett, both of whom referred in complimentary terms to the value of the address, with its insight and deep research, a vote of thanks was passed to the President. The Congress then adjourned till 10 o'clock this morning.