Between 1952 and 1986 the mortality from malignant tumours of the head and neck in the German Federal Republic shows a varying picture: a decline of cancer of the lip, equivocal rates for cancer of the nose and ear, increases for cancer of the tongue and of the larynx, a marked increase for cancer of the floor of the mouth and of the hypopharynx, a lesser increase for cancer of the tonsillar area and other parts of the mouth, but almost no increase for cancer of the salivary glands. The trends are similar for males and females, but the male:female ratio increased during the observation period. The increase of mortality begins in the middle age group. Based on the data of the cancer registry of the Saarland it can be estimated that on average the incidence is twice as high as mortality. In general the trend is similar both in incidence and mortality (but not the degree of the trend). Multiple malignancies of the head and neck are observed more often than expected and patients should be followed up carefully. Combined clinical-epidemiological studies are needed.