[Cancer incidence in Catalonia, 1998-2002]

The objectives of this study were to calculate the incidence of cancer in Catalonia for the period 1998-2002 using incidence data from the areas covered by population-based cancer registries in Catalonia (Tarragona and Gerona), to analyze the similarities and differences in the geographic patterns of cancer incidence between the two areas, and to analyze the cancer incidence calculated for Catalonia in the European context.

The average annual number of new cancer cases (except for non-melanoma or in situ skin cancer) estimated for Catalonia as whole during the period 1998-2002 was 29,062 (16,984 in males and 12,078 in females). The most frequent tumor in males was prostate cancer (18.0% of the total in males) followed by lung cancer (16.1%) and colorectal cancer (13.9%). In females, the most frequent type of cancer was breast cancer (28.1% of the total in women) followed by colorectal (15.2%) and uterine corpus cancers (6.1%).

The incidence of cancer in males was slightly higher in Gerona, mainly due to a higher incidence of prostate and lung cancers. Similar rates were observed for females in both geographic areas. These differences could be attributed to a distinct prevalence in the risk factors and/or differences in access to and utilization of preventive diagnostic services. In the European context, the incidence of cancer in Catalan males is in fourth place, whereas the incidence of cancer in Catalan females is one of the lowest.