Thirty-two-year trends of cancer incidence by sex and cancer site in the Veneto Region from 1987 to 2019

Alessandra Buja; Giuseppe De Luca; Manuel Zorzi; Emanuela Bovo; Simone Mocellin; Chiara Trevisiol; Vincenzo Bronte; Stefano Guzzinati; Massimo Rugge

doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1267534

Thirty-two-year trends of cancer incidence by sex and cancer site in the Veneto Region from 1987 to 2019

Front Public Health. 2024 Jan 8:11:1267534. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1267534. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Cardiological, Thoracic, Vascular Sciences and Public Health, University of Padua, Padua, Italy.
² Veneto Tumour Registry, Azienda Zero, Padua, Italy.
³ Soft-Tissue, Peritoneum, and Melanoma Surgical Oncology Unit, Veneto Institute of Oncology IOV - IRCCS, Padua, Italy.
⁴ Department of Surgery, Oncology, and Gastroenterology - DISCOG, University of Padova, Padua, Italy.
⁵ Veneto Institute of Oncology IOV - IRCCS, Padua, Italy.
⁶ Pathology and Cytopathology Unit, Department of Medicine-DIMED, University of Padua, Padua, Italy.

Abstract

Background: This observational study considers the sex-specific incidence of the most incident cancers as recorded in the population-based Veneto Regional Cancer Registry over a period of more than 30 years (1987-2019).

Methods: The Veneto Regional Cancer Registry collected data for the time interval 1987-2019. Significant changes in incidence trends calculated on age-standardized incidence rates (Annual Percent Change-APC) were identified by join point regression analysis.

Results: Overall, the incidence trend for all cancers decreased in males and remained stable in females. In nine cancer sites, the incidence trends showed consistent differences by sex (oral cavity, esophagus, colon rectum and anus, liver, larynx, lung, cutaneous malignant melanoma, bladder, and thyroid gland). Other malignancies did not show significant sex-related differences (stomach, pancreas, biliary tract, kidney/urinary tract, central nervous system, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and leukemia).

Conclusion: In the period 1987-2019, this study revealed sex-related differences in cancer incidence trends. Over time, cancer incidence remained higher in males, with a decreasing epidemiological impact, plausibly resulting from prevention campaigns against environmental cancer risk factors, as tobacco and alcohol. Conversely, a significant decrease was not observed in the incidence trend in females. These findings contribute essential insights for profiling the epidemiological map of cancer in a large Italian population, allowing comparison with other European cancer epidemiology studies and providing updated data supporting sex-related primary and secondary cancer prevention strategies.

Keywords: cancer; cohort studies; epidemiology; incidence; observational study; registry; sex characteristics.

Publication types

Observational Study
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Central Nervous System
Ethanol
Female
Humans
Incidence
Male
Melanoma*
Skin Neoplasms*

Substances

Ethanol

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This research has received “Current Research” funds from the Italian Ministry of Health to cover publication costs.