Abstract
Between 1943 and 1982, 5,140 new cases of testicular cancer were diagnosed in Denmark. The age-standardized incidence rate more than doubled in the period. Striking variations is seen in the age-relationship over time with a four-fold increase in incidence for men aged 15-24 years while no increment was observed for those above 65 years of age. The increase with time in the risk could be accounted for by a cohort effect. The mortality rate did not parallel the incidence rate and a 50% decrease in mortality rate appeared in the period 1978-1982. Introduction of combination chemotherapy including cis-platinum is one of the main factors responsible for this beneficial development. The observed pattern of diverging trends in incidence and mortality of testicular cancer implies that mortality rates do not reflect the incidence and will accordingly be unsuited as a basis for aetiological considerations based on trends. The brisk increase in the risk of testicular cancer, especially among young men is in accordance with trends in other western countries, and prompts an enforced search for suspected or new risk factors.
Full text
PDF
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Clemmesen J. Statistical studies in the aetiology of malignant neoplasms. 3. Acta Pathol Microbiol Scand Suppl. 1969;209(Suppl):1+–1+. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Davies J. M. Testicular cancer in England and Wales: some epidemiological aspects. Lancet. 1981 Apr 25;1(8226):928–932. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(81)91625-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Nethersell A. B., Drake L. K., Sikora K. The increasing incidence of testicular cancer in East Anglia. Br J Cancer. 1984 Sep;50(3):377–380. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1984.186. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Peckham M. J., Horwich A., Blackmore C., Hendry W. F. Etoposide and cisplatin with or without bleomycin as first-line chemotherapy for patients with small-volume metastases of testicular nonseminoma. Cancer Treat Rep. 1985 May;69(5):483–488. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Petersen G. R., Lee J. A. Secular trends of malignant tumors of the testis in white men. J Natl Cancer Inst. 1972 Aug;49(2):339–354. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- von der Maase H., Engelholm S. A., Rørth M., Sandberg Nielsen E., Schultz H. P., Svennekjaer I. L., Vaeth M. Non-seminomatous testicular germ cell tumours in Denmark 1976-1980. Results of treatment. Acta Radiol Oncol. 1984;23(4):255–261. doi: 10.3109/02841868409136021. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]