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THE NEW YORK T1MES,, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 1978 L u~ r~ Gar~ cer Dea ths in Texas Rise ~' To Epidemic'Level, Study Finds , SpodW to TAe Wew YorY t1+e" r HOU'STON, Nov. 7- Death from lung cancer In Texas, and particulariy in the Industcialized metropolitan area of Hous- ton, nasgr~rvn de~rir>x the 1970's to what some heaith authorit(es are cailing "epi- demicpmpo rtions," a ordi to a study petior.eA here by the U versity of ~ exas System Cancer Center. •,-;:, . From 1969 to 1976, the statibticaj study found, the number of 1ung-caacer fatal- ities in the state increased by 53 percent, more than double the Z,S-peroent gross rate in Texaa for deaths from alt lorms of cancer as .a group. The general tion of the state increased by a percent tn the satne period. head of the cancer center's depsrtment of epidemiolo~r, lung caixer deaths In less industrialtzed areas of central and weat. em Texas were signifIcantly fewer than in tfie state as a whole. Ggarette smoking, of course, Is consid- ered a major cause of lung cancer, and Dr. Clark estimated that perhaps half the cases In Texas might be caused by ciga- rette smoking. But he said he.l6vubted that Texans were any more addicWd to cigarettes than other America8s. ; . Some more precise clues to ttesel mat- tere could 'emerge from future phases of the stuQlr, Including one that attempts to ana!.yze the various types of lung cancer cells. For example, one variety of cancer ceU Is linked directly toso-plking as a cause. By counting the number oi cases that that particular kind of caneer cell appears, it might be possible to separate the proportion of deaths caused by ciga- ~rette smoking. The same might be done ,with other causes and cell types. The ootnpleted statistical study found variations in the incidence of cancer among ethnkgrwps . For all kinds of cancer, wAites had a disproportionately high death rate, blacks had about what would be expected on the basis of their numbers in t]~e population, and Mexican- Americana had a disproportionately low death rate. The study also discovered. hornwer, that blacks were more likely to die from prostate, stomach, cervical and uterine cancer; whites from lung, colon, bladder, rectal and breast cancer, and A+iexican. Americans from stomach, cervical and thyroid cancer. These differences, too, are to be inves» .tlgatd in future studies. Dr. Guinee said that one question that might be asked, for example, would be, "Why do Sps.nish-sur- 'named people have less lung cancer? Is it because they are not involved in the in• dtutrial jobs or because they don't smoke as much " He said that actual life hlsto• ried would be examined in the search for 14 The incidence of lung cancer is tignifi- catttly+ r in Texas than in the nation as a e` said Dr. R. Lee Gart, presi-. dent emeritus of the cancer center here. The study was made in the presidency of Dr. Clark, who retired last summer. Since lung cancer Is fatal in most cases, deattys from the disease are considered to be~ '~a~ ~r~el[i,able';~cneasure of i~ general lnci- , .J~ •l t.-J ' l , ,. . ' St, ~, .'`% ", ' ; , '4 ~f . - .itdCtlj/3peakifl$, t$e tllrrn H~demiG'r appW only to annmur+icabte diseases. Ltnni* caaoer b not one of those. But if It were, tts higb inddence itl Texas would ,,qtialltp it as ap, epidemic, Dr. Clark said. ,: No ow oacnyocted with the study is sure wby the disease has become wch an af- fliaiott here. ><typotheses and theories abound, but hardprvof doea not. Finn ex- planations planned by thee nnivera university cancer center In conjunction with ' the state bealtIt depaltment. • . .. ' t :.. , Qne hypothesis holds that Oe incidence of hang catke~r is related to the state's rapid indust al expansion. "We figure that the environment is a big factor," said Dr. Clark "Interestingly eswugh, a ~rwp of Gulf Coast counties has a larger denca than the rest of.the state. There are a iot of petrochemical plants the.re, but also a lot of population and therefore a lot of pollution from many sources." By contrast, said Dr. Vincent Gulnee, sncb answers.