Epidemiology of Colorectal Cancer in Iraq, 2002-2014

After cardiovascular diseases, cancer is one of the major causes of death in Iraq but there is scarcity of data on cancer. This study aimed to estimate the incidence rate of colorectal cancer in Iraq and its distribution and determine its trend in Iraq from 2002 to 2011.

The necessary data for recording the incidence of colorectal cancer in Iraq were obtained from three main sources including the cancer registry for the period of 2002-2014. Data included information on gender, age, geographical distribution, site of tumors, and histology types.

A total of 7,246 cases of CRC were registered in the cancer registry for the period 2002-2011 and 706 cases in the National Cancer Hospital between 2012 and 2014. Male to female ratio varied from 1.17:1 to 1.28:1. About 40%-46% of cases were diagnosed in the age group of 40-59 years. The incidence rate increased from 2.75/105 pop in 2002 to 3.26/105 pop in 2011. Adenocarcinoma constituted 84.0% of all cases. Of the 706 registered cases during 2012-2014, 95% were diagnosed by histology of primary site. The degree of differentiation was moderate in 56% of cases. About 26% of cases were localized, 55.9% and 16% were with regional, and distant metastasis, respectively.

Iraq has a low CRC incidence rate but with a steady increase overtime. It is crucial to implement preventive strategies to control CRC in Iraq and to establish public awareness program about CRC and the importance of screening.