Trends in colorectal cancer incidence in Iran

Background and purpose: Colorectal cancer is the most common gastrointestinal cancer throughout the world. Knowledge about the disease incidence and its changes over time can be useful in planning for the prevention and cause detection, therefore this study aimed at investigating the incidence of gastric cancer in Iran. Materials and methods: This study was a reanalysis of existing data. We used the information published by National Cancer Registry System in Iran that were recorded between 2003- 2009. The incidence rates were then standardized using direct method by the World Health Organization standard population, and the incidence of this disease was determined. Results: The total number of colorectal cancers was 31,974 cases. Most cases were observed in 2009 and lowest rate was seen in 2003. The highest and lowest incident rates for men were found in Tehran province (2008) and South Khorasan Province (2007), respectively. For women the highest incidence of disease was recorded in Gilan province in 2008 an d lowest reported in South Khorasan Province in 2008. Conclusion: This study showed increasing trend in incidence of colorectal cancer in Iran. The rate of the disease is also increasing throughout the world but this could be prevented with educational interventions, screening for early diagnosis, thereby treatment in younger patients. © 2015, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences. All rights reserved