Incidence Characteristics and Histological Types of Head and Neck Cancer among Adults in Central Sudan: A Retrospective Study

Head and neck cancers (HNCs) are prevalent in Sudan, but the reasons for this and the incidence of different types of HNCs are not well understood. A cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted to provide baseline data on the epidemiology of HNCs among patients treated at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) in central Sudan. All cancer cases from 2016 to 2020 were retrieved from the NCI records. Of the 9475 new cancer patients who were registered at the NCI during the study period, 1033 (11%) had HNCs, of whom 767 (74.2%) were adults. The mean age of the adult patients was 54.5 years (standard deviation 15.8) and 449 (58.5%) patients were male. The annual incidence in adults was 4/10⁵ population. The most common HNC sites were the nasopharynx (25.3%), hypopharynx (22.8%), and oral cavity (22.2%). Carcinoma was the most common diagnosis (87.6%), followed by lymphoma (5.6%). Most patients' tumors were at a locally advanced (22%) or metastatic stage (47%) of HNCs at the time of presentation. Further studies to identify risk factors for HNCs, particularly for the most prevalent types in central Sudan, are needed. In addition, Sudan requires capacity building for cancer, including a national cancer registry.