Abstract
Many countries have reported an increase in breast cancer incidence in young women. The current study's objective was to explore breast cancer distribution in women less than 50 years of age in Brazil. A descriptive study on breast cancer incidence (selected cities) and mortality (Brazil and selected cities) in 2002-2004 was carried out, and the results were compared with those from other countries. The study also analyzed the trend in hospital morbidity and incidence rates for breast cancer. Porto Alegre (Rio Grande do Sul State) showed the highest incidence rates (17.9 and 165.5/100,000 in the 15-39 and 40-49-year age strata, respectively). Regarding mortality, Belo Horizonte (Minas Gerais State) showed the highest rate in the 15-39-year group and Porto Alegre in the 40-49-year group (2.8 and 25.5/100,000). Hospital admissions and incidence rates for breast cancer suggest a change in epidemiological distribution. The results reveal an epidemiological pattern of breast cancer in young Brazilian women with regional distribution characteristics.
Highlights
Breast cancer represents the cancer site with the highest incidence and is the leading cause of death from cancer among women worldwide 1, with an estimated 1.38 million new cases diagnosed in 2008 (23% of all cancers) 2
A descriptive study was conducted on the distribution of breast cancer incidence rates and hospital morbidity and mortality (Brazil and selected cities) in women under 50 years of age in Brazil from 2002 to 2004, performing an internal comparison of the data and with rates observed in other countries
Fortaleza was the Brazilian city with the lowest incidence rate (11.8/100,000), while the countries described with the lowest rates were Angola (6.2/100,000) and Gambia (5.0/100,000) (Figure 1)
Summary
Breast cancer represents the cancer site with the highest incidence and is the leading cause of death from cancer among women worldwide 1, with an estimated 1.38 million new cases diagnosed in 2008 (23% of all cancers) 2. In Brazil, estimated cancer incidence in 2013 shows an expected 52,680 new cases of female breast cancer (52 cases per 100,000 women) 3. The natural history of breast cancer points to an increase in incidence rates of this disease with increasing age, expressed as higher incidence rates in post-menopause 2. Members of families affected by hereditary syndromes for these neoplasms may have a 40 to 80% risk of developing breast cancer, as in individuals with specific mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes 5. Mutations in these genes, with autosomal dominant inheritance, are responsible for the so-called hereditary breast-ovarian cancer syndrome 6. Mutations in the TP53 gene in families with Li-Fraumeni and Li-Fraumeni-like syndrome 7 and in the PTEN gene in families with Cowden syndrome 8 are rare, but when they occur they are associated with high risk of breast cancer at young ages 9
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