Pattern of Cancer in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Malwa Region of Punjab, in Comparison to Other Regions in India

Context: Cancer pattern varies in different regions and depends on race, lifestyle and diet, There is a lack of definitive information regarding hospital-based cancer profile in Southern Punjab, which is a cotton growing area. Excess of toxins in the macro environment is thought to be the reason for the high incidence of cancer in this area. Aims: To generate data on the magnitude and pattern of cancer cases reporting in the medical college hospital and to plan activities for prevention of cancer in the field practice area. Settings and Design: A five year record-based retrospective study from 1*"January 2007 to 31 December 2011. Materials and Methods: All cancer cases who reported either for diagnosis or for treatment (radiotherapy/chemotherapy/surgery) were included in the study. These confirmed cases of cancer were classified according to the International classification of Disease (ICD-10) given by WHO. Statistical Analysis: Descriptive statistics, percentages. Results: Out of a total of 1328 cancer cases, females accounted for 809 (60.9%) and males for 519 (39.1%) cases. Male to female ratio was 1:1.55. The maximum number of patients were seen in 35-64 yr age group (63.5%). Top five leading sites of cancer in males were lung (9.6%), myeloid leukemia (8.3%), prostate (6.8%), mouth (6.1%) and gall bladder (6.0%): and in females were breast (35.7%), cervix (19.1%). esophagus (5.1%), myeloid leukemia (4.7%) and gall bladder (3.9%). Our figures have been compared with the national data from NCRP. Conclusion: Population-based epidemiological studies are required to find out the disease burden & its cause in this region.