CHANGES IN THE AETIOLOGICAL FACTORS PATTERN ‎OF BREAST CANCER IN BASRAH; A PROSPECTIVE ‎STUDY

Mazin Hawaz Al-Hawaz,Zaidoon Khalaf Dahoos

doi:10.33762/bsurg.2005.57520

Abstract

This is a prospective case control study conducted over a period of two years to evaluate the risk ‎factors of breast cancer in Basrah.‎ ‎ One hundred and ten female patients with carcinoma of breast were admitted to the general surgical ‎department in three main referral hospitals in Basrah and those attended to Basrah breast clinic, ‎compared with (140) women who had no breast cancer from the population as a control group were ‎included in the study. The patients were diagnosed to have breast cancer according to the results of fine ‎needle aspiration cytology biopsy and the results of histopathological examination of excisional biopsy ‎taken from the primary growth in the breast.‎ ‎ The study involved history, physical examination, laboratory & radiological investigations, ultrasonic ‎study and the results of fine needle aspiration cytology biopsy and histopathological examination.‎ ‎ The data showed that the range of age of the group affected was (41-50 years); the patients were ‎mostly from urban areas (66.36%); the married patients were most commonly affected than single ‎patients (77.27%). Most of them (76.3%) had a history of breast feeding and (27.2%) of patients had a ‎history of contraceptive pills taking. ‎ ‎ Sixty two patients had acceptable range of body mass index, and seven patients only had a family ‎history of breast cancer.‎ ‎ The study showed that the epidemiological pattern of the risk factors of breast cancer were altered to ‎some extent according to the environmental, psychological and nutritional changes that occurred in our ‎country in the last decades.‎

Highlights

Breast cancer is the commonest malignancy among women, and it is the commonest cause of death in middle aged women in western countries
It is well accepted that breast cancer arises in a multistep fashion[6,7], there is at least a five folds variation in the incidence of the disease reported among different countries, this difference appears to be diminishing
In particular the past and present circumstances that our country were exposed. This fact is supported by a study of prince et al from the American cancer society which was concluded that women experiencing a stressor objectively rates as highly threatening and who were without intimate emotional support had a nine folds increase in risk of developing breast carcinoma[17]

Summary

Introduction

Breast cancer is the commonest malignancy among women, and it is the commonest cause of death in middle aged women in western countries. Each year there are approximately 30,000 new cases and 16,000 deaths from the disease in the UK1. The age-adjusted incidence of new cases has been steadily increasing since the mid 1940s, in the 1970s the probability of a women in the United States developing breast cancer was estimated at 1 in 13, while in 1996 the frequency was 1 in 82. Despite the steady increase in incidence, the overall breast cancer mortality has remain static, this relative decrease in mortality rate reflects the early detection of the disease[3]. United States ranks thirteenth with (22.0 cases per 100,000). Nuns and Jewish women have a higher than average incidence[3,4]

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