Summary of Cancer Data 1988-1996

This report presents a statistical summary of the rates and trends of newly-diagnosed cancers among Minnesota residents for the years 1988 through 1996, with special emphasis on the most recent five years (1992-1996). These data come from the Minnesota Cancer Surveillance System within the Minnesota Department of Health. For completeness, this report also provides summary information on the rates of cancer deaths (mortality) during the same time period. Death certificate data come from the Minnesota Center for Health Statistics. Highlights of this report are described below.

• This report is the first one to contain information on stage at diagnosis, which is a measure of how advanced the cancer was by the time it was first diagnosed.

• During the five-year period 1992-1996, 99,877 new cancers were diagnosed in Minnesota residents. On average, 10,561 new cancers were diagnosed in males and 9,415 new cancers were diagnosed in females each year. During the same period, an average of 4,446 and 4,155 cancer deaths occurred among males and females, respectively, each year.

• For males, the average annual rate of new cancers was 464 per 100,000 persons. For females, the annual rate was 335 per 100,000 persons. Cancer rates were higher in males than females for all but a few types of cancer. When the same time periods were compared, overall cancer rates in Minnesota were slightly lower than rates reported by the National Cancer Institute for other areas of the United States. Caution is required when comparing cancer rates due to differences in the time period for which data are available, differences in racial composition in different areas of the United States, and other factors.  Cancer Incidence 1992 - 1996

• There are well over 100 different types of cancer; however, relatively few types of cancer account for the majority of cancer incidence (Figures S.1 and S.2). Among men, the most common cancer was prostate cancer, which represented one-third (33.5 percent) of new cancers. The annual number of prostate cancers (3,536) exceeded the number of lung, colon, and rectum cancers combined (2,600). Cancers of the prostate, lung, colon and rectum combined accounted for 58.1 percent of all new cancers in Minnesota males. In women, breast cancer was the most common type of cancer, accounting for approximately one-third (32.3 percent) of new cancer cases. The annual number of breast cancers (3,043) exceeded the number of lung, colon, and rectum cancers combined (2,149). Cancers of the breast, lung, colon and rectum accounted for 55.1 percent of all new cancers in women, while cancers of the uterus and ovary accounted for another 8.8 percent.

• A very different distribution of cancers occurs among children under 15 years of age. Of the 803 childhood cancers (including benign tumors of the central nervous system) diagnosed during 1992-1996, 28 percent were leukemias. Acute lymphocytic leukemia was the single most common type of childhood cancer, comprising 23 percent of the total. Tumors of the brain and nervous system were the second most common group, accounting for about 25 percent of the total. Leukemias, tumors of the brain and nervous system, together with lymphomas and neuroblastomas accounted for 71.2 percent of childhood neoplasms. Approximately one in 435 children will be diagnosed with a malignancy by the age of 15. Childhood Cancer in Minnesota 1992- 1996

• Cancer rates vary enormously by age. Rates are lowest in later childhood and adolescence, then continue to rise sharply throughout the succeeding decades. The median age at diagnosis for all cancers combined was 69 years in males and 67 in females. The median age at diagnosis varies by type of cancer, ranging from 31 years for cancer of the bones and joints in males to 76 years for cancer of the stomach in females.

• Using current cancer rates and life expectancy, the average lifetime risk of developing cancer or dying from cancer can be estimated. Just as with estimates of life expectancy, these estimates do not apply to any specific individual. It is estimated that there would be 518 cancers during the lifetimes of 1,000 Minnesota males born today, and 447 cancers during the lifetimes of 1,000 Minnesota females born today. The risk of dying from cancer is substantially lower than being diagnosed with a cancer. It is estimated that 245 out of every 1,000 males will die of cancer, while 215 out of every 1,000 females will die of cancer.

• Nine years of MCSS data (1988-1996) are now available for examining time trends in cancer incidence. The most noticeable change in incidence was observed in prostate cancer, which increased dramatically between 1988 and 1992, and has been decreasing since. The introduction and use of the prostatic specific antigen screening test has been the major influence in the changing rates of detection for prostate cancer. Colorectal cancer incidence decreased by 2 percent per year over the nine-year period, resulting in a 16.5 percent total decrease. Cancers strongly related to smoking have declined in males but increased in females. Although breast cancer incidence has been fairly stable, the death rate for breast cancer in Minnesota women began to fall in 1992, resulting in an average decline of 2 percent per year. Incidence increased for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in both sexes, and incidence of skin melanomas increased in males. Overall cancer mortality fell in males approximately 0.6 percent per year .

• Detailed summaries of the descriptive epidemiology and risk factors for 25 types of cancer are availiable at the University of Minnesota's Cancer Center's Web Site. Attention: by selecting this link you will be leaving the Minnesota Department of Health Web site..