战后四十年间,日本的疾病状况变化极大。这种变化达到了人们连对疾病的价值观念也产生了变化的程度。战前最可怕的疾病是急慢性感染性疾病。当时倘若被说成是结核病,无疑等于被宣告为死刑。然而当前最可怕的疾病似乎是癌症。因此,为了不给癌症患者以沉重的打击,常常不将真实病名告诉患者。这样的疾病变迁,不仅日本,世界先进国家亦是如此。发展中国家犹如日本战前一样,尚无明显变化,但这些国家,随着时间的推移,包括癌症在内的成人疾病,也必将成为严重问题。人类疾病的变迁,尽管快慢不同,但确是朝着同一个方向前进着的。其中日本的特点是,近四十年来的变化远较其他国家迅速。这样的疾病变迁,与日本人的平均寿命延长有着极为密切的关系。急性传染病多侵犯不具有免疫力的小儿,因此迄今为止夺去了很多小儿的宝贵生命,结果导致了平均寿命的缩短。感染性疾病的减少和消灭带来平均寿命的延长;引起老年人口的相对增加;导致了成人疾病的多发;客观上成了促进疾病变迁的动力。 In the 40 years after the war, the disease conditions in Japan have changed dramatically. This change has reached the point where even the values ​​of the disease have changed. The most horrible disease before the war was acute and chronic infectious diseases. At that time, if it was said to be tuberculosis, it would undoubtedly mean being declared a death sentence. However, the most horrible disease at the moment seems to be cancer. Therefore, in order not to give the cancer patients a heavy blow, often do not tell the patient the true name of the disease. Such disease changes, not only Japan, the world’s advanced countries as well. There is no obvious change in developing countries as Japan did before the war, but in these countries over time, adult diseases, including cancer, will certainly become serious problems. The changes in human disease, despite the difference in speed, are indeed heading in the same direction. Japan is characterized by the fact that the changes in the past four decades have been far more rapid than those in other countries. Such changes in the disease, and the average life expectancy of Japanese people have a very close relationship. Acute infectious diseases are more infringing on non-immune children, thus depriving many children of precious lives so far, resulting in a reduction in average life expectancy. The reduction and elimination of infectious diseases lead to an increase in average life expectancy; the relative increase in the elderly population has led to the frequent occurrence of adult diseases; and objectively, it has become an impetus for the promotion of disease changes.