Daily AncestorCancer
Cancer on an old record meant any malignant growth; the Census Bureau used it as the general name for every kind of malignant tumor.
Webster's 1913 says cancer formerly meant any malignant growth, especially one with great pain, ulceration and wasting. The 1911 Census Bureau manual kept cancer as the general statistical term for all malignant tumors.
The same manual asked doctors to name the organ first affected, as in cancer of the stomach or breast, and called a bare cancer less definite than carcinoma or sarcoma. IPUMS sorts cancer by body site in its codes for the 1850 to 1880 mortality schedules.
As seen in a recordCause of death column, 1850 to 1880 federal mortality schedule
Sophronia Teal, 58, F, W, Oct., Cancer of breast, 1 yr.
Sources
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Cancer." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/causes-of-death/cancer. Last checked 2026-10-12.