The frequency of large bowel cancer as seen in Addis Ababa University, Pathology Department

Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) once thought rare in Africans is being seen more frequently. Diet and life style modify the risk of CRC. Its frequency, age, sex and site distribution has not been studied systematically in our country. The presentation of CRC was studied and compared in two 5-year periods with a 10 year time gap. The biopsies of 255 patients with a diagnosis of CRC during two periods were reviewed. CRC constituted 0.8% of the total of biopsies and 34% of colorectal biopsies. The mean age at presentation was 47 years while 61.4% occurred below the age of 50 years, 36% below 40 and 16% occurred below the age of 30 years. Of all CRC 66.7% were located in the rectum and 33.3% in the colon. The male to female ratio for both rectal and colonic cancers was 2:1. These findings did not show any major change during the two study periods. CRC occur at a much younger age in Ethiopia than in the developed world. More than half of the cases were in the rectum. Therefore, the shift of CRC to the right colon reported of elsewhere was not observed. The clinician should expect CRC also in young patients, and most of these carcinomas are still detectable by proctosigmoidoscopy.