Rate of Breast Cancer in Italy Significantly Higher Than Previousl...(per 100000 women aged 0 to 84). There wa...),Health

But the most important finding of the study reveals that the highest increase in the incidence rate per 100,000 was observed among women below 45: +28.6 percent in people 25 to 44.

The new analysis examines the number of major surgeries (mastectomies and quadrantectomies) attributed to breast cancer over six years and by age group. Their results show that over that period, 100,745 mastectomies and 168,147 quadrantectomies were performed. A total of 41,608 major surgeries due to breast cancer were performed in the year 2000, a figure that rose to 47,200 in 2005, signifying a 13.8 percent rise over the six years.

By comparison, official estimations from the Italian Ministry of Health tallied only 37,300 cases in the year 2005.

Until now, official epidemiological data concerning the incidence of breast cancer in Italy has been computed using a statistical model (MIAMOD--Morality-Incidence Analysis MODel) based on mortality and survival data. The newly published analysis relies on hospitalization databases that track major breast surgeries.

The current study notes that while use of MIAMOD may be justified in light of the need to evaluate the incidence of all tumors, the figures may underestimate the number of breast cancers, since many deaths that occur at home or in hospital settings might be attributed to cardiovascular causes on the statistical form filled out by physicians.

Sbarro Health Research Organization (www.shro.org), a nonprofit charitable organization, is a leader in cancer, cardiovascular, and diabetes research, and supports the Sbarro Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine located at the Center for Biot
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