Cancers of the Thyroid: Overview and Statistics in the United States and Oklahoma

Recent studies have shown an apparent increase in thyroid cancer in the United States. Whether is due to an actual increase or increased screening is disputed. We analyzed thyroid cancer incidence and mortality across age and racial groups in Oklahoma (using data from the Oklahoma Central Cancer Registry) against Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program national data - using SEER*Stat software for mortality. In the US and Oklahoma, females had a higher AAIR compared to males, but it was lower in Oklahoma than in the US (Females: US 15.5 per 100,000, OK 10.9 per 100,000; Males: US 5.4 per 100,000, OK 3.8 per 100,000). Overall, five-year relative survival was lower, yet still high, for Oklahoma than in the US (92.1% v. 97.1%). Survival by stage was lower in Oklahoma compared to the United States for localized (97.8% v. 99.8%), regional (92.0% v. 97.0%), and distant (36.6% v. 55.3%) stage cancers.