Geographic Variations in Oral Cancer Rates in New York State

Background and Objectives: During the past decade, federal, state and local health agencies have been involved in concerted efforts to prevent and control the occurrence of oral and pharyngeal cancers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Dental Association have directed resources in New York State (NYS) to increase awareness amongst the general public and health care providers. The purpose of this project is to: (i) explore trends and geographic variations in oral cancer incidence and mortality in NYS by county and compare it with National Cancer Institute's SEER data; (ii) correlate the prevalence of major risk factors with oral cancer incidence

Method: Data for oral cancer incidence and mortality were downloaded from the NYS Department of Health Cancer Registry web site and for major risk factors from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, 2003. Descriptive statistics and bivariate correlation analysis were done using SPSS (Version 15.0).

Results: In NYS, in years 2000-2004, the incidence rate per 100,000 in males was 14.6 and in females 6.0. Thirty six counties had rates higher than the state average among males with Hamilton County, an upstate county, being the highest (43/100,000). Data from 1976-2004 show that in Upstate New York, there was a marked reduction in oral cancer incidence rates among blacks. This trend is similar to NYS and SEER data trends. However, in New York City, blacks as well as white males showed a marked reduction. In bivariate analysis, oral cancer incidence rate in males had a significant positive correlation with current smokers by county (r= .414; p<0.01). There was no correlation between oral cancer incidence rate and alcohol drinking in both males and females.

Conclusion: More aggressive measures targeted to specific populations with high risk factors such as smoking are needed to reduce and prevent oral cancer.