Bay State News

There were 28 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Massachusetts during the week ending June 11, 2022, a 3.4% decrease from the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending June 11, 2022, there were 1,030 deaths in the state. 17.6% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.9% were from cancer and 6.9% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 12.7% 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 June 11, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 4, 2022
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	226	243
Heart disease	181	181
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	43	41
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	40	54
Alzheimer's disease	33	20
Cerebrovascular diseases	32	38
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	28	29
Diabetes mellitus	20	26
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	15	23
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	18

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending June 11, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending June 4, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	131	122