Differences in Prostate Cancer Incidence and Mortality in Lower Saxony (Germany) and Groningen Province (Netherlands): Potential Impact of Prostate-Specific Antigen Testing

Sanny Kappen; Geertruida H de Bock; Eunice Sirri; Claudia Vohmann; Joachim Kieschke; Alexander Winter

doi:10.3389/fonc.2021.681006

Differences in Prostate Cancer Incidence and Mortality in Lower Saxony (Germany) and Groningen Province (Netherlands): Potential Impact of Prostate-Specific Antigen Testing

Front Oncol. 2021 May 28:11:681006. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2021.681006. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Sanny Kappen¹, Geertruida H de Bock², Eunice Sirri³, Claudia Vohmann³, Joachim Kieschke³, Alexander Winter⁴

Affiliations

¹ Division of Epidemiology and Biometry, Department of Health Services Research, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany.
² Department of Epidemiology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.
³ Lower Saxony Epidemiological Cancer Registry, Oldenburg, Germany.
⁴ University Hospital for Urology, Klinikum Oldenburg, Department of Human Medicine, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany.

Abstract

Background: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most frequent cancer among men in Europe. Differences in PCa incidence around the world can be partly explained by variations in recommendations for prostate-specific antigen (PSA), particularly for early detection. For example, the PSA testing policy is more conservative in the Netherlands than in Germany. To better understand the relationship between PSA testing recommendations and PCa incidence, stage distribution, and mortality, we compared these variables over time between Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany and the neighboring province of Groningen in the Netherlands.

Methods: Population data, tumor stage- and age group-specific PCa incidence (ICD-10 C61) and mortality rates for Lower Saxony and Groningen were obtained from the Lower Saxony Epidemiological Cancer Registry, the Netherlands Comprehensive Cancer Organization, and Statistics Netherlands for 2003-2012. Incidence and mortality rates per 100,000 person-years were age-standardized (ASR, old European standard). Trends in age-standardized incidence rates (ASIR) and mortality rates (ASMR) for specific age groups were assessed using joinpoint regression.

Results: The mean annual PCa ASIR between 2003 and 2012 was on average 19.9% higher in Lower Saxony than in Groningen (120.5 vs. 100.5 per 100,000), while the mean annual ASMR was on average 24.3% lower in Lower Saxony than in Groningen (21.5 vs. 28.4 per 100,000). Between 2003 and 2012, the average annual percentage change (AAPC) in PCa incidence rates did not change significantly in either Lower Saxony (-1.8%, 95% CI -3.5, 0.0) or Groningen (0.2%, 95% CI -5.0, 5.7). In contrast, the AAPC in mortality rate decreased significantly during the same time period in Lower Saxony (-2.5%, 95% CI -3.0, -2.0) but not in Groningen (0.1%, 95% CI -2.4, 2.6).

Conclusions: Higher PCa incidence and lower PCa-related mortality was detected in Lower Saxony than in Groningen. Although recommendations on PSA testing may play a role, the assessed data could not offer obvious explanations to the observed differences. Therefore, further investigations including data on the actual use of PSA testing, other influences (e.g., dietary and ethnic factors), and better data quality are needed to explain differences between the regions.

Keywords: Germany; Netherlands; early detection of cancer; epidemiology; incidence; mortality; prostate-specific antigen; prostatic neoplasms.