Geographic Distribution of Inflammatory Breast Cancer and Non-Inflammatory Breast Cancer in Gharbiah, Egypt

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) is a rare but aggressive form of breast cancer, constituting about 1-5% of breast cancers in the U.S. but about 11% in Egypt. The etiology of IBC is unknown, but the distribution of residence of IBC and non-IBC patients may provide clues to the disease risk factors. Therefore, we investigated the geographic distribution of IBC and non-IBC in the province of Gharbiah, Egypt. METHODS:All breast cancers diagnosed during the period of January 2009 to December 2010 were retrieved from the Gharbiah Population-based registry. IBC cases were obtained from a case-control study conducted in the same region and period. Incidence rates were calculated for IBC and non-IBC for each of the eight districts and their rural/urban regions. RESULTS:The incidence of IBC was higher in rural than urban areas, in contrast to the incidence of non-IBC. Clustering of IBC and non-IBC was observed more in urban than in rural areas. IBC clusters were detected in 7 of the 8 urban areas of Gharbiah, with the highest incidence identified in urban Kafr El-Zayat. Non-IBC clusters were distributed in all 8 urban areas of Gharbiah without clustering, with highest incidence is identified in urban Tanta. CONCLUSION:Our results showed different geospatial distributions of IBC and non-IBC relative to the regional environmental exposures. Future studies should explore specific environmental exposures that may contribute to the geographic distribution of IBC and non-IBC in the region to further explore the etiology of IBC and non-IBC.

Medical Oncology Education in Egypt Over the Past 50 Years: the Experience of the National Cancer Institute of Cairo University

“…Such curricula should consider the local cancer profile of the trainees’ home countries, resources for cancer management in the foreign countries, and the short-term and long-term plans for setting up new cancer treatment and prevention programs in the trainees’ home countries. Furthermore, the Egyptian experience in dealing with incomplete and inconsistent data [ 16 , 17 ] and the introduction of innovative methods for patient, public, and professional education can help those trainees and their countries in developing their own programs. The future training program can also represent a model for other international collaborations and dissemination of successful cancer education programs.…”