Introduction - Drawing on a particularly rich dataset, this article describes social inequalities in cancer mortality and their changes over time in France. Methods - The data are drawn from INSEE’s Permanent Demographic Sample, which covers approximately 1% of the French population, to which medical causes of death have been added. Individuals’ social status was measured using the level of education reported in the 1968, 1975, 1982, and 1990 censuses. Results - Significant social inequalities in cancer mortality are observed among men, particularly for cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract (UADT). Social inequalities are less pronounced among women, but they are observed for cancers of the uterus, stomach, and lung. Social inequalities in cancer mortality among men increased between 1968 and 1981 and have stabilized since the 1980s. The increase is particularly significant for cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract (UADT). Among women, the lower breast cancer mortality observed in the early 1970s among those with lower educational attainment gradually diminished and disappeared by the late 1990s. Discussion - These results highlight the magnitude and relevance of the problem of social inequalities in cancer mortality in France. (R.A.)