Hawkeye Reporter

There were 89 deaths with cancer listed as the underlying cause reported in Iowa during the week ending March 12, a 2.3% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending March 12, there were 412 deaths in the state. 21.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.6% were from cancer and 10.2% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 13.1% of deaths were from Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Studies show doctors and medical examiners may underreport Alzheimer's disease and dementia-related conditions as the underlying cause of death on death certificates, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Once infected, older adults with dementia are likely to develop a more severe and dangerous illness. The diseases which make an older adult more vulnerable to COVID-19 are age-associated chronic conditions, according to the Bright Focus Foundation.

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 12	Deaths in Week Ending March 5
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	89	87
Heart disease	89	104
Alzheimer's disease	26	31
Cerebrovascular diseases	25	26
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	24	38
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	20	32
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	18	30
Diabetes mellitus	13	17
Influenza and pneumonia	10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	10

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending March 12	Deaths in Week Ending March 5
Alzheimer disease and dementia	54	62