The Ministry of Health has published statistics for 2019, in which 4,120 deaths were registered - 12 fewer than in 2018.
The ratio was somewhat balanced between men and women. The average age at the time of death for men was 73, while women were aged 81 on average.
For the first time, the number of cancer victims outranked the number of deceased people suffering from cardiovascular illnesses. These represent the leading causes of death in both Luxembourg and the European Union.
93.5% of deaths were directly caused by illness, while 6.5% of deaths in 2019 were ascribed to external causes. More than half of all deaths took place in hospital, while a quarter took place in retirement homes, and 17.4% at home.
The highest number of deaths was recorded in December 2019, with 382 deaths, as opposed to June with 303 deaths. 26.9% of deaths occurred during the first quarter of 2019.
1,139 people died as a result of cancer, compared to 1,137 of victims of cardiovascular disease. A decade prior, in 2009, the difference between the two causes stood at 263, with 1,060 cancer victims, and 1,323 heart disease victims.
These two causes represented more than half of all 2019 deaths in Luxembourg with 55.2%, compared to 66% in 2009.
According to statistics published by Eurostat on 3 March 2021, there were 580,000 more deaths in the EU between March and December 2020 compared to the same period in 2016-2019. This data includes all legal deaths (deaths of residents) documented in Luxembourg by Statec.
According to a Statec report in February 2021, 4,649 deaths were registered in Luxembourg in 2020.
The second highest death toll was registered in 1976, when 4,507 people died in the Grand Duchy. The increase in the number of deaths in 2020 is 8.5% compared to 2019 (4,283 deaths) and 7.7% compared to 2018 (4,318 deaths).
