Pattern and Incidence of Cancer in Red Sea State, Sudan

Objective: To study the incidence rate and the pattern of cancer in Red Sea State, Sudan. Methods: All the diagnosed cancer cases were recorded from the histopathology laboratory, Almawani Hospital, Red Sea State, Sudan during the period November 2003 to November 2006. The cancers were classified according to the organs affected and then ranked in their order of relative frequency. The mean age, age range, male to female ratio, the incidence rate and the age standardized rate were also calculated. Results: The incidence rate of cancer was 12.7 per 100,000. Females were twice affected as males. The mean age of presentation was 48 years. The age standardized rate was 41.5 per 100,000. The most common cancers are breast, cervical, head and neck, gastrointestinal and skin cancer. In females, the most frequent types were breast, cervical, head and neck cancers and female genital system cancers. The most common cancers in males were head and neck, skin, soft tissue and gastrointestinal cancers. Conclusion: Females\' cancers, especially breast cancers and cervical cancers, were the most common types of malignancies in the general population. This necessitates the establishment of screening program to all women in their reproductive life for these cancers. Keywords: Prevalence, malignancies, Africa, Middle EastSudan Journal of Medical Sciences Vol. 2 (2) 2007: pp. 115-11