Background: Colorectal cancer is an important public health problem. There are nearly one million new cases of colorectal cancer diagnosed world-wide each year and half a million deaths. Regionally it is the fourth most common cause of morbidity and mortality. Recent reports show that, in Jordan, it ranked the second among all new cancers in both males and females. Aim: To explore and identify the epidemiology of colorectal cancer in Jordan over the 10 years period 2003-2012 to provide update information regarding the likely future. Methods: This project was a descriptive study, cases were identified from Jordan cancer registry (JCR), all Jordanian cases diagnosed and registered in 2003-2012 were included, data on age, sex, primary site, morphology, grade and stage were collected and filtered, frequency by graphs and tables was demonstrated, SPSS software version 17 was used for analysis, and official approval to do the study was taken from the registry. Results: Total number of colorectal cancers in Jordan registered in JCR from 2003 to 2012 was 3299 cases among both genders, 1833 in males which accounted for (55.6%) and 1466 cases (44.4%) in females. In 2012, there were 567 (11.3%) of all newly diagnosed cases among Jordanians compared with 357 (10.3%) in 2003. Male to female ratio was (0.9:1) compared with (1.4:1) in 2003. The median age at diagnosis was 61 years for both genders in 2012, in 2003 it was (51). The overall age-standardized incidence rate (ASR) increased from 11/100,000 in 2003 to 16.3/100.000 in 2012. Conclusion: This study will provide health professionals researchers and policy makers with detailed information about colorectal cancer epidemiology through 2003-2012 and it demonstrate the magnitude of the problem, which will assist in planning and evaluation and to identify priorities, and this will provide a solid database for establishing screening programs for early detection.
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