Bevölkerungsbezogene Darmkrebsinzidenz im Zeitraum 2000 bis 2006 – Deuten sich erste Auswirkungen des Koloskopie-Screenings an? Eine gemeinsame Auswertung der Krebsregisterdaten aus Bremen, Hamburg, dem Saarland und Schleswig-Holstein

Temporal trends in age- and stage-specific incidence of colorectal adenocarcinomas in Germany

BACKGROUND

A national colorectal cancer (CRC) screening programme was launched in 2002 in Germany. A comprehensive evaluation of the programme effectiveness using real-world data is still lacking. In addition, there are regional reports on increasing colorectal cancer incidence in younger populations. Therefore, we aimed to describe and compare the overall, age- and stage-specific incidence trends for colorectal, colon and rectal cancer.

METHODS

We used data from seven population-based cancer registries in Germany. We report absolute and relative changes in incidence rates between the early screening phase (2003-2005) and the most recent time period available (2015-2017), as well as annual percent changes. We analysed incidences according to tumour site (colorectum, colon, and rectum) and to six age groups (young adults: 15-34, 35-39, 40-49, screening-entitled/older adults: 50-54, 55-69 and 70 + years old).

RESULTS

In our sample of 271,011 colorectal adenocarcinomas, about two-thirds were located in the colon and 95% of them occurred in the age group 50+ (50-54: 5%, 55-69: 32.8%, 70+: 57.2%). For the time period 2003-2005 the age-specific incidence rates of individuals in the age group 55-69 were about 76/100,00 for colon and 54/100,000 for rectal cancer (age group 70 + colon: 179/100,000; rectum: 84/100,000). The incidence rates in young adults were less than 13% of that of individuals in the age group 55-69 (< 5% of individuals aged 70+; <33% of individuals aged 50-54). Over time, incidence decreased in individuals at the age of 55+, for all subsites considered as well as for early and late stage cancers (with few exceptions), while incidence of young adult CRC (both early and late stage) increased steepest in the youngest age groups. For late stage rectal cancer, a shift was observed in all age groups from UICC stage IV to stage III being the most frequent stage.

CONCLUSIONS

Six years after the introduction of the national colonoscopy screening program, late stage CRC incidence began to decline substantially in the screening-eligible age groups (55-69, 70+). It is likely that this decline and the increase in early stage CRC observed in younger age groups can be attributed to the program. Long lasting public awareness campaigns for CRC screening might have led to opportunistic screening in younger adults. Whether these benefits outweigh the possible harm of screening in younger age groups remains unclear.

Long-term Incidence and Mortality Trends for Breast Cancer in Germany

Introduction Changes in risk factors and the introduction of mammography screening in 2005 have led to dramatic changes in the breast cancer-associated burden of disease in Germany. This study aimed to investigate long-term disease-related incidence and mortality trends in women from East and West Germany since the reunification of Germany. Methods Total and stage-specific incidence rates were evaluated based on data obtained from selected cancer registries. Sufficiently complete data going back to 1995 were available for 4 East German and 3 West German regions. The figures were weighted for population size, and rates were calculated for the whole of Germany based on the rates for East and West Germany. The study particularly focused on 3 different age groups: women eligible for mammography screening (50 - 69 years), younger women (30 - 49 years) and older women (70+ years). All rates were standardised for age. The mortality rates obtained from the official statistics on cause of death since 1990 were processed accordingly. Results Incidence rates in the observation period increased, as they were affected by the increasing number of cases with early-stage cancers being diagnosed in the screening age group. The total incidence for this group, which included the incidence of non-invasive breast cancers, increased by 14.5% between 2005 and 2016. Early-stage cancers (UICC stages 0 and I) increased by 48.1% while late-stage diagnoses (UICC stages III and IV) decreased by 31.6%. Qualitatively similar changes were noted for the other age groups, although they were less pronounced. The decrease in breast cancer mortality observed since the mid-1990s ended around 2008 for the group of younger women but continued in the screening age group. After 2008, an increase in mortality was observed in the group of older women. The differences in disease burden between East and West Germany (in favour of East Germany) decreased in younger women during the observation period but tended to increase in the group of older women. Conclusion The analysis suggests that the introduction of mammography screening contributed to a decrease in the incidence of advanced-stage breast cancers and in breast cancer-related mortality rates but also resulted in a substantial number of overdiagnoses. The relatively unfavourable incidence trend in the group of younger women, particularly in East Germany, should be interpreted in the context of lifestyle changes. The slight increase in mortality observed in the group of older women after 2008 requires further analysis.

[Morbidity, mortality and analysis of prognostic factors for colorectal cancer]

BACKGROUND

This study analyzed morbidity, mortality and prognostic factors for patient survival in a single center collective of patients with colorectal cancer and a high follow-up rate.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

A total of 698 consecutive patients were included in this study. Data were collected prospectively. Descriptive and survival analyses as well as Cox regression analyses were performed to identify factors for morbidity, mortality and prognostic factors for survival.

RESULTS

At presentation 78.8 % of the colon cancer patients and 83.5 % of rectal cancer patients showed symptomatic disease and 6.5 % of patients underwent an emergency procedure. Mortality was 3.6 %, morbidity was 42.7 % and 4.3 % of patients developed an anastomotic leakage with the need of reoperation. In spite of the regular application of a fast-track program, 10 % of patients had a prolonged duration of bowel paralysis. In patients with colon cancer there were no differences between overall survival (OAS) and disease-free survival, whereas there was a significant difference in patients with rectal cancer. The mean survival of all patients was 65.39 ± 1.722 months. The ASA score, cardiovascular disease, number of metastatic lymph nodes, lymph node ratio, residual tumor and general or surgery-associated complications were strongly independent influencing factors on OAS. A Cox analysis revealed age at diagnosis and microscopic residual tumor (TNM R1) as highly significant influencing factors on OAS. Other significant factors of influence on OAS were development of general or surgery-associated complications and the presence of cardiovascular diseases.

CONCLUSION

Cardiovascular disease leads to a higher morbidity rate whereas age, International Union Against Cancer (UICC) stage, R-status, lymphatic spread and occurrence of complications are important prognostic factors for survival.

PCR in Helicobacter spp. diagnostic in extragastric malignancies of digestive system

Recognition of Helicobacter pylori as an important factor in genesis of gastric adenocarcinoma lead to a large number of studies concerning potential role of Helicobacter spp. in the development of extragastric digestive malignancies. The serological studies indicated possible localizations in the digestive system being from interest in enlightening Helicobacter spp. carcinogenic potential. The PCR obtruded itself as a gold standard in proving existence of actual correlation. In this review, the authors have examined studies conducted in the last 10 years examining Helicobacter spp. correlation with extragastric digestive carcinogenesis. Studies have been observed in four groups referring to hepatic carcinoma, bile duct cancer, pancreatic cancer, and colon cancer. The results of these researches have shown that there is a strong correlation between Helicobacter spp. colonization and primary liver tumors as well as bile duct tumors, whereas conclusions made by authors examining pancreatic cancer are contradictory and demands further investigation. No correlation between Helicobacter spp. and colon cancer have been proven. The PCR subtype most widely used in studies included in this review was nested PCR, whereas genes targeted most frequently for amplification are 16S rDNA of Helicobacter spp. and UreA gene or cagA gene of H. pylori. During the last 10 years PCR has proven itself as a sovereign method for Helicobacter spp. diagnostic in extragastric organs in the digestive system. Knowledge and experiences obtained in this domain could be encouraging for researchers in analogous fields of interest.

Same-day bowel cleansing regimen is superior to a split-dose regimen over 2 days for afternoon colonoscopy: results from a large prospective series

GOALS AND BACKGROUND

Conventional bowel preparation for afternoon colonoscopy requires an oral agent the day before the procedure. Bowel cleansing given only on the day of the colonoscopy has never been attempted. The aims of this study were to compare the efficacy of bowel cleansing, impact on activities of daily living (ADLs), side effects, and patient preference of a same-day regimen with a 2-day regimen.

STUDY

A single-blinded, prospective cohort study. Patients were block recruited into 2 groups with the endoscopist blinded to the regimen. Group A: 3 sachets of sodium picosulphate given at 12:00 noon and at 05:00 PM the day before and at 8:00 AM on the morning of the procedure. Group B: 2 sachets of sodium picosulphate on the morning of the procedure at 07:00 and 10:00 AM. Patients completed a quality-of-life questionnaire investigating the side effects, impact on ADLs, and regimen preference. The main outcome measures were mucosal cleansing, impact on ADLs, side effects, and patient preference of the regimen.

RESULTS

A total of 227 patients underwent screening colonoscopy. There were 95 patients in group A and 132 in group B, all of whom were age and sex matched. Same-day preparation produced better mucosal cleansing (P = 0.0046) with fewer side effects (P = 0.002). Impact on ADLs was less with the same-day regimen (P < 0.0001). Significantly more number of patients preferred the same-day preparation compared with the 2-day regimen (P = 0.0147).

CONCLUSIONS

Same-day bowel preparation is feasible, safe, and more effective than a split-dose regimen. It has fewer adverse events and is preferred by patients.

Imputation of missing values of tumour stage in population-based cancer registration

Background

Missing data on tumour stage information is a common problem in population-based cancer registries. Statistical analyses on the level of tumour stage may be biased, if no adequate method for handling of missing data is applied. In order to determine a useful way to treat missing data on tumour stage, we examined different imputation models for multiple imputation with chained equations for analysing the stage-specific numbers of cases of malignant melanoma and female breast cancer.

Methods

This analysis was based on the malignant melanoma data set and the female breast cancer data set of the cancer registry Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. The cases with complete tumour stage information were extracted and their stage information partly removed according to a MAR missingness-pattern, resulting in five simulated data sets for each cancer entity. The missing tumour stage values were then treated with multiple imputation with chained equations, using polytomous regression, predictive mean matching, random forests and proportional sampling as imputation models. The estimated tumour stages, stage-specific numbers of cases and survival curves after multiple imputation were compared to the observed ones.

Results

The amount of missing values for malignant melanoma was too high to estimate a reasonable number of cases for each UICC stage. However, multiple imputation of missing stage values led to stage-specific numbers of cases of T-stage for malignant melanoma as well as T- and UICC-stage for breast cancer close to the observed numbers of cases. The observed tumour stages on the individual level, the stage-specific numbers of cases and the observed survival curves were best met with polytomous regression or predictive mean matching but not with random forest or proportional sampling as imputation models.

Conclusions

This limited simulation study indicates that multiple imputation with chained equations is an appropriate technique for dealing with missing information on tumour stage in population-based cancer registries, if the amount of unstaged cases is on a reasonable level.