Malignant primary brain and other central nervous system tumors diagnosed in Canada from 2009 to 2013

Abstract

Background: We present a national surveillance report on malignant primary brain and other central nervous system (CNS) tumors diagnosed in the Canadian population in 2009-2013.

Methods: Patients were identified through the Canadian Cancer Registry, an administrative dataset that includes cancer incidence data from all provinces/territories in Canada. Tumor types were classified by site and histology using the definitions from the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States (CBTRUS). Incidence rates (IRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated per 100000 person-years (py) and age-standardized to the 2011 Canadian population for comparisons within Canada and to the 2000 United States population for comparisons with the US.

Results: Overall, 12515 malignant brain and other CNS tumors were diagnosed in the Canadian population in 2009-2013 (IR: 8.71/100000 py; 95% CI: 8.56, 8.86); 7085 were among males (IR: 10.06/100000 py; 95% CI: 9.82, 10.29) and 5430 among females (IR: 7.41/100000 py; 95% CI: 7.22, 7.61). Of these, 12115 were classifiable according to histological subgroups defined by CBTRUS. The most common histology was glioblastoma (IR: 4.06/100000 py; 95% CI: 3.95, 4.16). Among those aged 0-19 years, 1130 malignant brain and CNS tumors were diagnosed in 2009-2013 (IR: 3.36/100000 py; 95% CI: 3.16, 3.56). The most common histology among the pediatric population was embryonal tumor (IR: 0.74/100000 py; 95% CI: 0.65, 0.84).

Conclusions: These data represent an initial detailed report on the frequency and distribution of primary malignant brain and other CNS tumors diagnosed in the Canadian population in 2009-2013. The reported distributions of tumor diagnoses by sex and age reflected expected patterns based on the literature from similar populations. A report incorporating data on nonmalignant primary brain tumors is forthcoming.

Keywords: Canadian surveillance report; epidemiology; malignant brain neoplasms; malignant central nervous system neoplasms; neuro-oncology.