In 2022, the number of fatalities in Japan caused by ******************* amounted to approximately ***** thousand, making cancerous tumors the most common cause of death in Japan. In that year, the total number of deaths in Japan reached around **** million cases. Age-related health issues are increasing in Japan Japan has one of the healthiest populations, with one of the highest average life expectancies worldwide. However, paired with a declining fertility rate, this leads to a demographic shift in the country. Accordingly, the aging population is facing more age-related health issues while the overall number of deaths keeps rising. The aging of the population also causes further issues such as labor shortages in several industries, including the healthcare sector, as well as an increasing number of patients in need of long-term care and support. The demographic development will evoke pressure on governmental spending but also bring opportunities for service providers and related industries. Cancer remains the leading cause of death Next to malignant neoplasms, several other types of cancer, such as stomach, pancreas, and colon cancer, rank among the leading causes of death in Japan. Even though the overall estimated number of cancer cases has been growing in Japan, the survival chances have been increasing significantly over the past decade.One of the reasons for the higher survival chances is the rising awareness around the topic, which leads Japanese people to use prevention measures such as cancer screening. Furthermore, there have been advances in the field of medical treatments and medication for cancer. Accordingly, oncology drugs were the pharmaceuticals with the highest production value recently.

In 2023, malignant neoplasms were the leading cause of death among the male population in Japan at around 221.4 thousand cases. This number accounted for approximately 27.6 percent of about 802.5 thousand death cases of men recorded in the country during that year. Heart diseases, excluding hypertensive, followed with a share of around 14 percent. Malignant neoplasmsIn recent years, malignant neoplasms have been the leading cause of death for both female and male populations in Japan. The most frequent cause of cancerous tumor related deaths has continued to be lung cancer for both men and women. As smoking and passive smoking are some of the main causes of lung cancer, the health ministry in Japan set the goal of reducing the smoking rate of adults from around 19 to 12 percent by 2022. To minimize the risk of passive smoking, the government also amended the Health Promotion Act and prohibited smoking in public facilities, offices, most restaurants, and public areas starting from April 2020. SuicideOne of the leading causes of death specific to men in Japan was suicide. In the last decade, the number of suicides committed by men in Japan remained roughly double the number of those committed by women. While close to half of the suicides in Japan were committed due to health reasons in previous years, the number of suicides owning to work-related problems has also become a serious social issue in the current Japanese society. One of the reason behind it is said to be the working condition of employees in Japan with a severe workload. The government has been aiming to reduce working hours and overtime to improve the working conditions of workers in Japan.

This statistic shows the 20 countries * with the lowest infant mortality rate in 2024. An estimated 1.5 out of 1,000 live births died in the first year of life in Slovenia and Singapore in 2024. Infant mortality Infant mortality rates are often used as an indicator of the health and well-being of a nation. Monaco, Iceland, and Japan are among the top three countries with the lowest infant mortality rates with around 2 infant deaths per 1,000 infants within their first year of life. Generally, the countries with the lowest infant mortality also have some of the highest average life expectancy figures. Additionally, the countries with the highest density of physicians and doctors also generally report low infant mortality. Yet, many different factors contribute to differing rates, including the overall income of a country, health spending per capita, a mother’s level of education, environmental conditions, and medical infrastructure, to name a few. This creates a lot of variation concerning the level of childbirth and infant care around the world. The countries with the highest rates of infant mortality include Afghanistan, Mali, and Somalia. These countries experience around 100 infant deaths per 1,000 infants in their first year of life. While the reasons for high rates of infant mortality are numerous, the leading causes of death for children under the year five around the world are Pneumonia, Diarrhea, and Prematurity.

UNICEF's country profile for Japan, including under-five mortality rates, child health, education and sanitation data.

In 2024, the 50- to 59-year-old age group had the highest suicide rate in Japan, with **** suicides per 100,000 inhabitants. The self-inflicted death rate among young people under 20 years was ***. Japan's recent suicide rates While the country's suicide rate had initially shown a downward trend in the most recent decade, 2020 marked the first year that the suicide numbers rose again. The COVID-19 pandemic likely caused this unexpected upward trend. From a gender perspective, Japanese men were more likely to commit suicide than women. **** deaths per 100,000 male inhabitants were reported in 2024, compared to a female suicide rate of **** in the same year. What are the reasons behind Japan’s high suicide rates?  Many factors are being blamed for the Japan's high suicide rates, including bullying, isolation, and a lack of a proficient mental healthcare system. Among others, financial worries and problems directly related to work have been one of the main reasons for self-inflicted deaths in the past years. Historically, the country's high suicide rates have been closely linked to the economic situation of the individuals. Japan’s suicide numbers peaked in 2009 when the country experienced its worst recession since World War II.

In 2023, the estimated number of people reported missing or killed by natural disasters amounted to around 35. The highest number was recorded in 2011, following the Great East Japan Earthquake, which was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in Japan. Both the earthquake and the following tsunami destroyed many Japanese cities and caused a nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in Fukushima Prefecture.  Natural disasters in Japan Since Japan is situated along the Ring of Fire, an area where several tectonic plates meet, it is exposed to a variety of natural disasters. Major earthquakes occur regularly, making the island nation vulnerable to tsunamis due to its oceanic setting. Furthermore, typhoons are likely to approach the archipelago, usually between July and October during the peak of the typhoon season. Tropical cyclones often cause heavy rainfall and flooding.  Damage caused by natural disasters In recent years, typhoons represented the most common cause of damaged facilities. Since the overall number of typhoons increased over the past decade, the amount of damage caused by flooding increased as well. The Japanese government spends a large amount of its disaster risk management budget on disaster reconstruction as well as disaster prevention.

In 2024, over 20,300 people in Japan died of suicide. The overall number of suicides decreased after the unexpected upward trend, likely connected to the COVID-19 pandemic. Why Japanese men are more likely to die by suicide  When looking at suicide numbers by gender, Japanese men are more likely to commit suicide compared to women. Attitudes on traditional gender roles in Japan may have shifted in recent decades, but social change has since been slow. Men are still expected to focus on their careers and provide for the family. Hence, economic slumps are typically reflected in rising suicide figures among men, as failure to fulfill social expectations can lead to mental health issues, which in turn might trigger suicidal thoughts. As an example, the suicide figures increased only for men in 2009 as a result of the global banking crisis. Suicide resulting from work-related issues is also more common among men than among women. Stress and pressure at work pose health risks It has been determined over the past few decades that one of the primary issues facing Japanese workers that leads to self-harm is exhaustion. Occupational sudden mortality, known as "karoshi (death by overwork)" is a well-known phenomenon in Japanese society. Besides physical pressure, mental stress from the employment may cause karoshi. Suicide due to occupational stress or overwork is called "karojisatsu (overwork suicide)" in Japan.

In 2021, the number of deaths due to air pollution in Japan was estimated at 52.1 thousand. Since 2010, the number of deaths has risen, making Japan one of the countries with a high number of deaths attributable to air pollution exposure.
Health risks and sources of air pollution The most common air pollutant is particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less, also called PM 2.5. The air pollutants can invade the lungs and cause asthma, cancer, heart diseases, allergies, and other health conditions. A major cause of air pollution is fossil fuel combustion, which is produced from power plants and industrial facilities. In Japan, fossil fuels such as petroleum and coal had the largest share of the primary energy supply. Another cause is carbon dioxide emissions from the transport sector since PM 2.5 is generated from sources such as automobile exhaust fumes. Therefore, most pollution areas are highly populated, urban areas. Measures to improve air quality in Japan In 2020, the Tokyo government announced its intention to improve the air quality with stricter air pollution regulations. The new target for Tokyo's level of PM 2.5 is set at 10 micrograms or less per cubic meter by fiscal year 2030. To decrease air pollution, Japan aims to reduce its use of fossil fuels and increase its nuclear and renewable energy share. Renewables accounted for a share of primary energy supply of almost nine percent, whereas nuclear energy made up about three percent in 2018. In recent years, these measures began to show their effect as figures for the total annual greenhouse gas emissions indicated a decline.

In Italy, approximately 722,000 deaths were registered in 2022. According to the data, ischemic heart diseases were the most common cause of death in the country, with 59,052 cases registered, closely followed by cerebrovascular diseases. COVID-19 was the third illness causing the largest number of deaths in Italy. COVID-19 death comorbidities Most patients admitted to the hospital and later deceased with the coronavirus (COVID-19) infection showed one or more comorbidities. Hypertension was the most common pre-existing health condition, detected in 65.8 percent of patients who died after contracting the virus. Type 2-diabetes, ischemic heart disease, and atrial fibrillation were also among the most common comorbidities in COVID-19 patients who lost their lives. Cancer deaths The number of people who died from a tumor in Italy decreased constantly between 2006 and 2021. Indeed, the rate of deaths due to cancer among Italians dropped from 28.7 deaths per 10,000 inhabitants in 2006 to 23.3 in 2021. The Italian region with the highest cancer mortality rate was Campania, followed by Sardinia, and Sicily.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a rare, fatal cardiopulmonary disease with an annual mortality rate of 15%. The disease is a subset (Group 1) within the World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) classification of the different types of pulmonary hypertension (PH). PAH is characterized by an abnormal rise in the resting mean pulmonary arterial pressure (>25mmHg compared with normal levels of around 14mmHg). This increased pressure is caused by pulmonary arterial obstruction due to endothelial dysfunction and vascular remodeling, and leads to increased resistance in the arterial blood vessels. Since PAH is a progressive disorder, the pulmonary pressure keeps building up as the patient advances through the later stages of the disease, leading to reduced cardiac output, right heart failure, and ultimately, death.
GlobalData estimates the 2016 sales for the PAH market at approximately $3.79 billion across the 7MM, encompassing the US, the five major European countries (5EU: France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and UK), and Japan. By 2026 GlobalData expects the overall market to grow at a moderate compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.2% to reach sales of $4.72 billion over the 10-year period. The 5EU market is anticipated to grow the fastest of the three regions, recording a CAGR of 5.4%, while the US and Japan will each record CAGRs of 1.2% and 1.0%, respectively. At the end of 2026, the US will contribute around 67% of global sales, while the 5EU and Japan will account for 28% and 5% of global sales, respectively. The higher sales numbers for the US can be attributed to the higher price of pharmaceuticals and the greater diagnosed prevalence of PAH in the region. Read More

In 2024, around ***** people in Japan committed suicide due to problems related to their working situation in Japan. “Karojisatsu," or suicide brought on by excessive work or stress at work, is a well-known phenomenon in Japan.

Estimates for the total death count of the Second World War generally range somewhere between 70 and 85 million people. The Soviet Union suffered the highest number of fatalities of any single nation, with estimates mostly falling between 22 and 27 million deaths. China then suffered the second greatest, at around 20 million, although these figures are less certain and often overlap with the Chinese Civil War. Over 80 percent of all deaths were of those from Allied countries, and the majority of these were civilians. In contrast, 15 to 20 percent were among the Axis powers, and the majority of these were military deaths, as shown in the death ratios of Germany and Japan. Civilian deaths and atrocities It is believed that 60 to 67 percent of all deaths were civilian fatalities, largely resulting from war-related famine or disease, and war crimes or atrocities. Systematic genocide, extermination campaigns, and forced labor, particularly by the Germans, Japanese, and Soviets, led to the deaths of millions. In this regard, Nazi activities alone resulted in 17 million deaths, including six million Jews in what is now known as The Holocaust. Not only was the scale of the conflict larger than any that had come before, but the nature of and reasoning behind this loss make the Second World War stand out as one of the most devastating and cruelest conflicts in history. Problems with these statistics Although the war is considered by many to be the defining event of the 20th century, exact figures for death tolls have proven impossible to determine, for a variety of reasons. Countries such as the U.S. have fairly consistent estimates due to preserved military records and comparatively few civilian casualties, although figures still vary by source. For most of Europe, records are less accurate. Border fluctuations and the upheaval of the interwar period mean that pre-war records were already poor or non-existent for many regions. The rapid and chaotic nature of the war then meant that deaths could not be accurately recorded at the time, and mass displacement or forced relocation resulted in the deaths of many civilians outside of their homeland, which makes country-specific figures more difficult to find. Early estimates of the war’s fatalities were also taken at face value and formed the basis of many historical works; these were often very inaccurate, but the validity of the source means that the figures continue to be cited today, despite contrary evidence.

In comparison to Europe, estimate ranges are often greater across Asia, where populations were larger but pre-war data was in short supply. Many of the Asian countries with high death tolls were European colonies, and the actions of authorities in the metropoles, such as the diversion of resources from Asia to Europe, led to millions of deaths through famine and disease. Additionally, over one million African soldiers were drafted into Europe’s armies during the war, yet individual statistics are unavailable for most of these colonies or successor states (notably Algeria and Libya). Thousands of Asian and African military deaths went unrecorded or are included with European or Japanese figures, and there are no reliable figures for deaths of millions from countries across North Africa or East Asia. Additionally, many concentration camp records were destroyed, and such records in Africa and Asia were even sparser than in Europe. While the Second World War is one of the most studied academic topics of the past century, it is unlikely that we will ever have a clear number for the lives lost in the conflict.

Over the last decade, Japan’s population has aged more and more, to the point where more than a quarter of Japanese were 65 years and older in 2022. Population growth has stopped and even reversed, since it’s been in the red for several years now.

It’s getting old

With almost 30 percent of its population being elderly inhabitants, Japan is considered the “oldest” country in the world today. Japan boasts a high life expectancy, in fact, the Japanese tend to live longer than the average human worldwide. The increase of the aging population is accompanied by a decrease of the total population caused by a sinking birth rate. Japan’s fertility rate has been below the replacement rate for many decades now, mostly due to economic uncertainty and thus a decreasing number of marriages.

Are the Japanese invincible?

There is no real mystery surrounding the ripe old age of so many Japanese. Their high average age is very likely due to high healthcare standards, nutrition, and an overall high standard of living – all of which could be adopted by other industrial nations as well. But with high age comes less capacity, and Japan’s future enemy might not be an early death, but rather a struggling social network.

Based on a comparison of coronavirus deaths in 210 countries relative to their population, Peru had the most losses to COVID-19 up until July 13, 2022. As of the same date, the virus had infected over 557.8 million people worldwide, and the number of deaths had totaled more than 6.3 million. Note, however, that COVID-19 test rates can vary per country. Additionally, big differences show up between countries when combining the number of deaths against confirmed COVID-19 cases. The source seemingly does not differentiate between "the Wuhan strain" (2019-nCOV) of COVID-19, "the Kent mutation" (B.1.1.7) that appeared in the UK in late 2020, the 2021 Delta variant (B.1.617.2) from India or the Omicron variant (B.1.1.529) from South Africa.

The difficulties of death figures

This table aims to provide a complete picture on the topic, but it very much relies on data that has become more difficult to compare. As the coronavirus pandemic developed across the world, countries already used different methods to count fatalities, and they sometimes changed them during the course of the pandemic. On April 16, for example, the Chinese city of Wuhan added a 50 percent increase in their death figures to account for community deaths. These deaths occurred outside of hospitals and went unaccounted for so far. The state of New York did something similar two days before, revising their figures with 3,700 new deaths as they started to include “assumed” coronavirus victims. The United Kingdom started counting deaths in care homes and private households on April 29, adjusting their number with about 5,000 new deaths (which were corrected lowered again by the same amount on August 18). This makes an already difficult comparison even more difficult. Belgium, for example, counts suspected coronavirus deaths in their figures, whereas other countries have not done that (yet). This means two things. First, it could have a big impact on both current as well as future figures. On April 16 already, UK health experts stated that if their numbers were corrected for community deaths like in Wuhan, the UK number would change from 205 to “above 300”. This is exactly what happened two weeks later. Second, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly which countries already have “revised” numbers (like Belgium, Wuhan or New York) and which ones do not. One work-around could be to look at (freely accessible) timelines that track the reported daily increase of deaths in certain countries. Several of these are available on our platform, such as for Belgium, Italy and Sweden. A sudden large increase might be an indicator that the domestic sources changed their methodology.

Where are these numbers coming from?

The numbers shown here were collected by Johns Hopkins University, a source that manually checks the data with domestic health authorities. For the majority of countries, this is from national authorities. In some cases, like China, the United States, Canada or Australia, city reports or other various state authorities were consulted. In this statistic, these separately reported numbers were put together. For more information or other freely accessible content, please visit our dedicated Facts and Figures page.

The statistic shows the unemployment rate in Japan from 1999 to 2024. In 2024, the unemployment rate in Japan was at about 2.56 percent. Employment and the economy in Japan Japan is one of the leading countries when it comes to economic key factors; its unemployment rate, for example, is lower than that of other major industrial and emerging countries. The Japanese work ethic is well-known worldwide, it is synonymous with a strong devotion to the company and to the task at hand; competition among co-workers and loyalty to the company are common and encouraged, working hours and over-time work are said to be excessive. The Japanese language even has its own term for sudden death from being overworked – “Karoshi”. After the devastating effects of World War II, Japan managed to recover economically and even earn a prominent role among other leading economic powers – a fact which is probably partly due to this attitude towards work and employment. Today, Japan is among the leading import countries worldwide, as well as the leading export countries worldwide. Additionally, Japan is one of the 20 countries with the largest proportion of the global domestic product, and also among the 20 countries with the largest gross domestic product per capita, even though it is also ranked tenth among the leading countries with the largest population.

In 2023, the number of male prisoners sentenced to death in Japanese penal institutions amounted to 99 inmates. There were no execution during the year.

Between 1953 and 2021, the death rate of the United Kingdom fluctuated between a high of 12.2 deaths per 1,000 people in 1962 and a low of 8.7 in 2011. From 2011 onwards, the death rate creeped up slightly and, in 2020, reached 10.3 deaths per 1,000 people. In 2021, the most recent year provided here, the death rate was ten, a decline from 2020 but still higher than in almost every year in the twenty-first century. The recent spike in the death rate corresponds to the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK, with the first cases recorded in early 2020. Most deaths since 1918 in 2020 In 2020, there were 689,629 deaths in the United Kingdom, the highest in more than a century. Although there were fewer deaths in 2021, at 667,479, this was still far higher than in recent years. When looking at the weekly deaths in England and Wales for this time period, two periods stand out for reporting far more deaths than usual. The first period was between weeks 13 and 22 of 2020, which saw two weeks in late April report more than 20,000 deaths. Excess deaths for the week ending April 17, 2020, were 11,854, and 11,539 for the following week. Another wave of deaths occurred in January 2021, when there were more than 18,000 deaths per week between weeks three and five of that year. Improvements to life expectancy slowing Between 2020 and 2022, life expectancy in the United Kingdom was approximately 82.57 years for women and 78.57 years for men. Compared with life expectancy in 1980/82 this marked an increase of around six years for women and almost eight years for men. Despite these long-term developments, improvements to life expectancy have been slowing in recent years, and have declined since 2017/19. As of 2022, the country with the highest life expectancy in the World was Japan, which was 84.5 years, followed by South Korea, at 83.6 years.

The largest tsunami in Japan since 2000 occurred in **** and had a height of around *** meters. The tsunami was caused by the *****************, also known as the ***************************. It was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in Japan and led to meltdowns at three reactors in the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. The damage caused by surging water was more destructive than the earthquake, as it destroyed many Japanese cities and led to the death of over 15 thousand people.  Japan is vulnerable to natural disasters Since Japan is situated along the Ring of Fire, an area where several tectonic plates meet, natural disasters such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur frequently. Furthermore, its oceanic setting makes the archipelago vulnerable to tsunamis when an earthquake occurs below or near the ocean.  Disaster preparation in Japan The Japanese government spends a large amount of its disaster risk management budget on disaster prevention. The country invests in disaster prevention systems such as earthquake alert systems in mobile phones, emergency facilities, and evacuation centers, as well as earthquake-resistant buildings, which are designed to move with the quake. Furthermore, participation in natural disaster drills is common and begins in kindergarten. Nevertheless, hundreds of people are reported missing or killed by natural disasters every year.

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China, saw infection cases spread throughout the Asia-Pacific region. By April 13, 2024, India had faced over 45 million coronavirus cases. South Korea followed behind India as having had the second highest number of coronavirus cases in the Asia-Pacific region, with about 34.6 million cases. At the same time, Japan had almost 34 million cases. At the beginning of the outbreak, people in South Korea had been optimistic and predicted that the number of cases would start to stabilize. What is SARS CoV 2?Novel coronavirus, officially known as SARS CoV 2, is a disease which causes respiratory problems which can lead to difficulty breathing and pneumonia. The illness is similar to that of SARS which spread throughout China in 2003. After the outbreak of the coronavirus, various businesses and shops closed to prevent further spread of the disease. Impacts from flight cancellations and travel plans were felt across the Asia-Pacific region. Many people expressed feelings of anxiety as to how the virus would progress. Impact throughout Asia-PacificThe Coronavirus and its variants have affected the Asia-Pacific region in various ways. Out of all Asia-Pacific countries, India was highly affected by the pandemic and experienced more than 50 thousand deaths. However, the country also saw the highest number of recoveries within the APAC region, followed by South Korea and Japan.