The new leading cause of death in some European countries is actually an encouraging sign

There's a new leading cause of death in certain European countries,andit's actually not bad news.Worldwide, heart disease tends to be the leading cause of death. In the US alone, it's responsible for 614,348 deaths a year, while cancer was responsible for 591,699.But anew report published Monday in the European Hearth Journal found that cancer has now beaten out cardiovascular disease (this includes coronary heart disease and stroke) as the leading cause of death in men.That's at least in part thanks to prevention and treatment measures for these heart conditions that have become more effective and more widely implemented in recent years.These countries had fewerheart disease deaths than cancer deaths:BelgiumDenmarkFranceItalyLuxembourgThe NetherlandsPortugalSloveniaSpainUKNorwayIsraelStill, researchers said, there's a ways to go when it comes to preventing the cardiovascular disease (or CVD) that leads to death."These figures highlight the wide inequalities between European countries in deaths from CVD," lead researcher Dr. Nick Townsend said in a release. "The highest numbers of deaths from CVD tend to be seen in Eastern European countries"which may not have the same resources available to devote toward primary and preventative care.Up next, the researchers want to discernthe reasons that cardiovascular diseasedeaths are down in some countries, but not in others. That will hopefully lead to more effective plans for bringing those deaths down around the world.SEE ALSO:A promising new set of cancer drugs has one big catchDON'T MISS:Intellia CEO: There won't be a 'next CRISPR'Join the conversation about this storyNOW WATCH: Humans are finally starting to understand the octopus, and it's mind-boggling
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