Incidence, trends in incidence and survival analysis in head and neck cancer from 1994 to 2013 in Girona, Spain: a population-based study

Abstract

Introduction: Head and Neck Cancer (HNC) is a highly heterogeneous disease comprising a large number of tumours located in the cervicofacial area. This study aimed to determine the epidemiological characteristics of HNC and its topographic sites. Data/Methods: 3171 patients with a HNC (470 lips, 767 oral cavity, 147 salivary glands, 294 oropharyngeal, 124 nasopharyngeal, 240 hypopharyngeal, 45 not specified (NE) pharyngeal, 112 nose, ear and sinuses and 972 laryngeal cancers) registered in Girona Cancer Registry (GCR) in Spain during the period of 1994-2013 were analysed to estimate their incidence, trends in incidence and observed survival. Results: Most patients were males (82.9%) between 50 and 74 years (64%). Relative to histological subtype, squamous cell neoplasms (SCN) was the most frequent in both sexes. Oral cavity was the most common topographic site in women, being the larynx for men and both sexes. Incidence decreased significantly in HNC for men and both sexes with annual percentage of change (APC) of -2.5 and -2.0, respectively, but not in oropharyngeal cancer. Five-year HNC observed survival for both sexes was 50.2%. Conclusions: Our study confirms the higher HNC incidence in men compared to women, being the most frequent topographic site the larynx and the oral cavity respectively. Also the decreasing incidence of HNC is confirmed with the exception of oropharyngeal cancer that its incidence remained the same during the study period. In terms of survival, good results were found. SCN are confirmed as the most common histological type regardless of sex or age