Heart ailments, infections, cancer biggest killers

Heart ailments, infectious diseases and cancer remain the world's top three killers, the UN health agency said on Monday.

Heart attacks and related problems are the top killer, especially among women, claiming 29 percent of people who die each year, the World Health Organization said in a report on the global burden of disease. In second place, infectious diseases lead to 16.2 percent of worldwide deaths.

Cancer, in third, claims 12.6 percent of global deaths, said the 146-page report, which is based on death registration data from 112 countries and estimates where reporting is incomplete.