Prostatic tumors in Iran.

Area of Science:

• Urology
• Oncology
• Pathology

Background:

• Male urogenital organ examinations constitute 8.6% of all tissue examinations.
• Prostate biopsies represent a significant portion of male urogenital biopsies.
• Prostate cancer is notably rare in Iran compared to Western countries.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the incidence and characteristics of prostate cancer in Iran.
• To compare prostate cancer prevalence with other male urogenital cancers.
• To investigate demographic and clinical aspects of prostate tumors.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of tissue examination data from pathological laboratories in Tehran.
• Inclusion of data from across Iran, covering a 31-year period.
• Review of 933 cases of male urogenital cancers.

Main Results:

• Prostate cancer accounted for only 0.33% of all male cancers studied.
• Bladder carcinomas were the most common male urogenital cancer; prostate carcinomas were the rarest.
• 97% of prostate tumors were benign; 3% were malignant, with a higher incidence in higher income groups.
• Peak incidence for benign tumors was 40-70 years, and for carcinoma, 50-70 years.
• Tumor origin was often the cortex, particularly the posterior lobe; histological types were consistent with international findings.

Conclusions:

• Carcinoma of the prostate is a rare malignancy in Iran, with a lower incidence than in Europe and America.
• Benign prostate tumors are significantly more common than malignant ones.
• Further systematic studies on asymptomatic prostate nodules are needed, potentially due to the low average age and rarity of malignancy in Iran.