The Prevalence of Breast Cancer in University Of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) and General Hospital Calabar (GHC) From 2006-2010

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most common cancer occurring in women among all other types of cancer. The incidence in most continents such as Africa varies in region and its cause is not ascertained in Nigeria. WHO estimated the incidence of breast cancer in 2002 for Nigeria to be 90.7/10,000 for males and 100.9/10,000 for females and the mortality rate was 72.2 and 76.0 compared to the incidence of 89.1/100,000 for males and 104/100,000 for males and the mortality rate of 72.2 and 79.6 recorded for Ghana and less figures for United State of America and United Kingdom. The aim of this study was to ascertain the prevalence of breast cancer in Calabar using patients who have been affected with this deadly disease and who visited University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) and General Hospital Calabar (GHC) between 2006 and 2010. All data collected were obtained from the health records and information unit of the UCTH and GHC in Cross River State. The result showed that among 162 cases recorded, 138 (80.3%) females and 24 (19.7%) males were affected from 2006-2010; and the incidence of breast cancer occurrence in UCTH and GHC increases as the years increased. This could be attributed to factors such as genetic, reproductive and hormonal, lifestyle and environment, age, preterm pregnancies, obesity and menopause.