Aims: The purpose of this study was to analyze the incidence and survival of pancreatic carcinoma in Sweden during 1980-2000.
Methods: In this population-based study the patients were identified in the Swedish Hospital Discharge Register and Cancer Register. Data were matched with those in the Register of Causes of Death in Sweden, and 16,758 patients were identified.
Results: During the studied period, 1819 patients underwent pancreatic resection, 7457 were treated with palliative procedures and, in 7482, no intervention was carried out. The incidence of pancreatic carcinoma in Sweden for men dropped from 16 per 100,000 at the beginning of the period to 8 per 100,000 in the year 2000. Corresponding figures for women were 12 and 7, respectively. Patients who underwent pancreatic resection had significantly longer survival compared to the palliative procedure or no-intervention groups (p<0.001). After 12 months 49.7% of the resected patients were alive while the corresponding survival in the palliative procedure and no-intervention groups were 13.6% and 11.9%, respectively. The five-year survival rate after resection was 10.8%. In the resection group survival improved over time (p<0.001) and women survived longer than men (p<0.01), which was not the case in the palliative procedure or no-intervention groups.
Conclusions: During the study period, the incidence of pancreatic carcinoma in Sweden decreased markedly. The resection rate increased and only in this group of patients an improved survival was noted over time. The survival was the same for patients who underwent palliative interventions as for those who only received supportive care.