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Updated: Jul 14, 2026

Development of Compendium for Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma
Published on: April 12, 2024
Oesophageal cancer in The Netherlands: increasing incidence and mortality but improving survival
Lucia M A Crane1, Michael Schaapveld, Otto Visser
1Department of Surgery, Division of Surgical Oncology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 30.001, 9700 RB, Groningen, The Netherlands.
Aim:
Oesophageal cancer is highly lethal with a 5-year relative survival of 10-15%. An increasing incidence has been reported for several parts of the Western world. We studied time trends in incidence, mortality and survival for oesophageal cancer in the Netherlands during 1989-2003.
Methods:
Data on incidence and survival were obtained from the Netherlands Cancer Registry and mortality data from Statistics Netherlands.
Results:
The age standardised incidence increased by 3.4% (p<0.001) and 1.9% (p=0.003) per year for males and females, respectively. This increase was almost exclusively caused by oesophageal adenocarcinomas. Age standardised mortality increased 2.5% (p<0.001) per year among males and 1.7% (p=0.002) per year among females. Relative survival improved significantly from 8.1% in 1989-1993 to 12.6% in 1999-2003 (p<0.001). Adjusted for age, stage, tumour location and surgery, the excess risk of death decreased by 22%.
Conclusion:
Oesophageal carcinoma incidence is rising in the Netherlands. Mortality increased at a slightly lower pace due to improving survival.
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