Oral and pharyngeal cancer in Europe

Abstract

Objectives: Our aim was to provide an up-to-date and review the incidence and mortality of oral and pharyngeal cancer in Europe. Methods: Data were retrieved from both national and regional population-based cancer registries. The online browser used in the present study was the European Network of Cancer Registries (EUREG. Version 1.0), which provided data for 22 countries of Northern and Eastern Europe and for 20 countries of Western and Southern Europe on the incidence of and mortality for oral and pharyngeal cancer. For countries not included in EUREG, data were retrieved from the European Cancer Estimates (EUCAN), the Global Cancer Estimates (GLOBOCAN) and Cancer Incidence in Five Continents. Oral cancer sub-sites were classified according to International Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th Edition categories. Results: Hungary recorded highest rates among European countries for both morbidity and mortality. Historically, France has had high rates particularly in areas in the north of France, where oral cancer was the most common in men. A decline in the incidence has been noted in the past one and half decades. However, France still has the highest incidence rates of orophayngeal cancer, one of the highest in the world. Denmark records high rates of oral cancer in women and lip cancer incidence is high in Spain. Conclusions: In Europe, regional differences in oral and pharyngeal cancer in terms of incidence and mortality are evident not only between north and south and between east and west but also within single regions (e.g. between the Scandinavian countries and the former Soviet republics). These findings reflect differences in lifestyle and in exposure to risk factors such as smoking (e.g. high incidence in Danish women), alcohol (e.g. in Lithuanian men) or both (e.g. Belgium and Portugal). Other traditional factors, such as actinic radiation, are responsible for a considerable number of cases of lip cancer (e.g. Spain), and oncogenic potential of human papillomavirus explains the rising trend in oropharyngeal cancer in some countries (e.g. Denmark and Scotland).

Population Health Inequalities Across and Within European Metropolitan Areas through the Lens of the EURO-HEALTHY Population Health Index

“…Thus, the analysis of the distribution of the value-scores on both indices shows a high dispersion across metropolitan areas: In Health Determinants the range goes from 49 (Athens) to 92 (Stockholm) and in Health Outcomes, from 62 (Lisbon) to 99 (Stockholm). The fact that urban areas from North-Western countries present better health scores than the Eastern and Southern ones is not new and is aligned with results from previous studies on population health in Europe [ 31 , 35 , 50 ].…”

Salivary IL-6 mRNA is a Robust Biomarker in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

“…The age distribution of patients was similar to previously reported Hungarian regional and nation-wide epidemiologic data. The predominance of female patients with 37% and the prevalence of advanced patients (stage 3 and 4: 62%) in the present investigation was more expressed than observed previously [1,12,20,21]. Although the distribution pattern of histological differentiation grades (G2 > G1 > G3) was similar as that reported in a previous North-Eastern Hungarian cohort, the ratio of less differentiated grades (G2 and G3) was slightly higher but the same as in the preliminary institutional pilot investigation [12,20].…”

“…Hungarian males and females exhibit the highest age-standardized rates both for the incidence and the mortality of oral cavity and pharyngeal cancers in Europe without substantial improvements in the last decades [1]. Frequently, oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is being diagnosed in advanced stages, i.e., stage III and IV, with long-term survival rates around 50% despite considerable progress in surgical methods, radio-, chemo-, and immunotherapy.…”

Mouth Cancer Awareness in General Population: Results from Grampian Region of Scotland, United Kingdom

“…Head and neck (HNC) cancers is a collective term which encompasses malignancies of oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, sinuses and salivary glands. Oral and pharyngeal cancer (OPC) is the 8th most common malignancy in Europe and the 11th cause for cancer mortality [1]. It has a heterogeneous distribution and projected incidence of 121,300 new cases in the continent in 2018 [2].…”