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Does the Breast Cancer Age at Diagnosis Differ by Ethnicity? A Study on Immigrants to Sweden

Hemminki, Kari LU ; Mousavi, Seyed Mohsen LU ; Sundquist, Jan LU and Brandt, Andreas LU (2011) In The Oncologist 16(2). p.146-154
Abstract
Background. Age-specific incidence rates for breast cancer in low-risk and high-risk ethnic populations differ by age at which the incidence maximum is reached: around 50 years in low-risk populations and over 60 years in high-risk populations. The interpretation of these differences remains unsettled, one line primarily referring to biological differences, the second one to cohort effects of rapidly increasing rates in young populations, and the third one to incomplete registration of cancer in the elderly. Methods. The nationwide Family-Cancer Database was used to analyze standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) and age at diagnosis of breast cancer in female immigrants to Sweden by their region of origin compared with women native to Sweden... (More)
Background. Age-specific incidence rates for breast cancer in low-risk and high-risk ethnic populations differ by age at which the incidence maximum is reached: around 50 years in low-risk populations and over 60 years in high-risk populations. The interpretation of these differences remains unsettled, one line primarily referring to biological differences, the second one to cohort effects of rapidly increasing rates in young populations, and the third one to incomplete registration of cancer in the elderly. Methods. The nationwide Family-Cancer Database was used to analyze standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) and age at diagnosis of breast cancer in female immigrants to Sweden by their region of origin compared with women native to Sweden matched on birth year and other relevant factors. Results. We showed first that the SIRs for breast cancer were lower in many immigrant groups compared with natives of Sweden; women from Turkey had the lowest SIR of 0.45, followed by those from Chile (0.54) and Southeast Asia (0.57). Women from nine regions showed an earlier mean age at diagnosis than their matched Swedish controls, the largest differences being 5.5 years for women from Turkey, 5.1 years for those from Asian Arab and "Other African" countries, 4.3 years for those from Iran, and 4.0 years for those from Iraq. Conclusions. The results show that in many immigrant groups, the diagnostic age is earlier (< 50 years) than in natives of Sweden (> 50 years), suggesting that true biological factors underlie the differences. These factors may explain much of the international variation in breast cancer incidence. Identifying these factors should advance understanding of breast cancer etiology and prevention. The Oncologist 2011; 16: 146-154 (Less)
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author
; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
The Oncologist
volume
16
issue
2
pages
146 - 154
publisher
AlphaMed Press
external identifiers
  • wos:000287698900003
  • scopus:79952608618
  • pmid:21266400
ISSN
1083-7159
DOI
10.1634/theoncologist.2010-0104
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
b0881831-61dd-46d5-868c-c094d774b2e2 (old id 1872566)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 13:38:26
date last changed
2022-01-27 20:15:11
@article{b0881831-61dd-46d5-868c-c094d774b2e2,
  abstract     = {{Background. Age-specific incidence rates for breast cancer in low-risk and high-risk ethnic populations differ by age at which the incidence maximum is reached: around 50 years in low-risk populations and over 60 years in high-risk populations. The interpretation of these differences remains unsettled, one line primarily referring to biological differences, the second one to cohort effects of rapidly increasing rates in young populations, and the third one to incomplete registration of cancer in the elderly. Methods. The nationwide Family-Cancer Database was used to analyze standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) and age at diagnosis of breast cancer in female immigrants to Sweden by their region of origin compared with women native to Sweden matched on birth year and other relevant factors. Results. We showed first that the SIRs for breast cancer were lower in many immigrant groups compared with natives of Sweden; women from Turkey had the lowest SIR of 0.45, followed by those from Chile (0.54) and Southeast Asia (0.57). Women from nine regions showed an earlier mean age at diagnosis than their matched Swedish controls, the largest differences being 5.5 years for women from Turkey, 5.1 years for those from Asian Arab and "Other African" countries, 4.3 years for those from Iran, and 4.0 years for those from Iraq. Conclusions. The results show that in many immigrant groups, the diagnostic age is earlier (&lt; 50 years) than in natives of Sweden (&gt; 50 years), suggesting that true biological factors underlie the differences. These factors may explain much of the international variation in breast cancer incidence. Identifying these factors should advance understanding of breast cancer etiology and prevention. The Oncologist 2011; 16: 146-154}},
  author       = {{Hemminki, Kari and Mousavi, Seyed Mohsen and Sundquist, Jan and Brandt, Andreas}},
  issn         = {{1083-7159}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{2}},
  pages        = {{146--154}},
  publisher    = {{AlphaMed Press}},
  series       = {{The Oncologist}},
  title        = {{Does the Breast Cancer Age at Diagnosis Differ by Ethnicity? A Study on Immigrants to Sweden}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1634/theoncologist.2010-0104}},
  doi          = {{10.1634/theoncologist.2010-0104}},
  volume       = {{16}},
  year         = {{2011}},
}