Skip to main content
PMC home page
British Journal of Cancer logoLink to British Journal of Cancer
. 1994 Nov;70(5):939–942. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1994.424

The epidemiology of carcinoid tumours in England and Scotland.

J N Newton 1, A J Swerdlow 1, I M dos Santos Silva 1, M P Vessey 1, D G Grahame-Smith 1, P Primatesta 1, D J Reynolds 1
PMCID: PMC2033547  PMID: 7947101

Abstract

Relatively little is known about the epidemiology of carcinoid tumours in contrast to the extensive information available on their biochemical effects and natural history. Accordingly, we have used cancer registrations in England from 1979 to 1987, and in Scotland from 1980 to 1989, to estimate the incidence of carcinoid tumours in Britain. Age-standardised incidence rates for England, based on 3,382 registrations, were 0.71 (0.68-0.75) for men and 0.87 (0.83-0.91) for women, per 100,000 per year. The equivalent rates for Scotland, based on 639 registrations, were 1.17 (0.91-1.44) for men and 1.36 (1.09-1.63) for women. There was a consistent female excess of carcinoid tumours in the reproductive years, which was reversed after the age of 50. The female excess was most striking for gastrointestinal carcinoid tumours in women aged 15-19 years (F:M ratio = 2.14). The sex differences are probably due in part to incidental diagnosis of carcinoid tumours during abdominal procedures, which are more common in women than men at ages 15-49 years. However, there is some evidence to suggest a true sex difference in incidence, particularly the fact that the sex ratio for thoracic tumours varies with age in a similar way to that for gastrointestinal tumours. Hormonal factors may, therefore, be important in the aetiology of carcinoid tumours.

Full text

PDF
939

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Basser R. L., Green M. D. Recent advances in carcinoids and gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors. Curr Opin Oncol. 1991 Feb;3(1):109–120. doi: 10.1097/00001622-199102000-00016. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Berge T., Linell F. Carcinoid tumours. Frequency in a defined population during a 12-year period. Acta Pathol Microbiol Scand A. 1976 Jul;84(4):322–330. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Godwin J. D., 2nd Carcinoid tumors. An analysis of 2,837 cases. Cancer. 1975 Aug;36(2):560–569. doi: 10.1002/1097-0142(197508)36:2<560::aid-cncr2820360235>3.0.co;2-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Keshgegian A. A., Wheeler J. E. Estrogen receptor protein in malignant carcinoid tumor: a report of 2 cases. Cancer. 1980 Jan 15;45(2):293–296. doi: 10.1002/1097-0142(19800115)45:2<293::aid-cncr2820450216>3.0.co;2-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. MACDONALD R. A. A study of 356 carcinoids of the gastrointestinal tract; report of four new cases of the carcinoid syndrome. Am J Med. 1956 Dec;21(6):867–878. doi: 10.1016/0002-9343(56)90101-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Moertel C. G., Engstrom P. F., Schutt A. J. Tamoxifen therapy for metastatic carcinoid tumor: a negative study. Ann Intern Med. 1984 Apr;100(4):531–532. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-100-4-531. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Myers C. F., Ershler W. B., Tannenbaum M. A., Barth R. Tamoxifen and carcinoid tumor. Ann Intern Med. 1982 Mar;96(3):383–383. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-96-3-383_1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Primatesta P., Goldacre M. J. Appendicectomy for acute appendicitis and for other conditions: an epidemiological study. Int J Epidemiol. 1994 Feb;23(1):155–160. doi: 10.1093/ije/23.1.155. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Roggo A., Wood W. C., Ottinger L. W. Carcinoid tumors of the appendix. Ann Surg. 1993 Apr;217(4):385–390. doi: 10.1097/00000658-199304000-00010. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Stiller C. A. Cancer registration: its uses in research, and confidentiality in the EC. J Epidemiol Community Health. 1993 Oct;47(5):342–344. doi: 10.1136/jech.47.5.342. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Swerdlow A. J., Douglas A. J., Vaughan Hudson G., Vaughan Hudson B. Completeness of cancer registration in England and Wales: an assessment based on 2,145 patients with Hodgkin's disease independently registered by the British National Lymphoma Investigation. Br J Cancer. 1993 Feb;67(2):326–329. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1993.60. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Thompson G. B., van Heerden J. A., Martin J. K., Jr, Schutt A. J., Ilstrup D. M., Carney J. A. Carcinoid tumors of the gastrointestinal tract: presentation, management, and prognosis. Surgery. 1985 Dec;98(6):1054–1063. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Watson R. G., Johnston C. F., O'Hare M. M., Anderson J. R., Wilson B. G., Collins J. S., Sloan J. M., Buchanan K. D. The frequency of gastrointestinal endocrine tumours in a well-defined population--Northern Ireland 1970-1985. Q J Med. 1989 Jul;72(267):647–657. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Weiss N. S., Yang C. P. Incidence of histologic types of cancer of the small intestine. J Natl Cancer Inst. 1987 Apr;78(4):653–656. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Woods H. F., Bax N. D., Ainsworth I. Abdominal carcinoid tumours in Sheffield. Digestion. 1990;45 (Suppl 1):17–22. doi: 10.1159/000200256. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. dos Santos Silva I., Swerdlow A. J. Sex differences in the risks of hormone-dependent cancers. Am J Epidemiol. 1993 Jul 1;138(1):10–28. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a116773. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from British Journal of Cancer are provided here courtesy of Cancer Research UK

RESOURCES