Descriptive epidemiology of cholangiocarcinoma in Italy

Alvaro, Domenico; Crocetti, Emanuele; Ferretti, Stefano; Bragazzi, Maria Consiglia; Capocaccia, Riccardo; the AISF “Cholangiocarcinoma” committee,

doi:10.1016/j.dld.2009.10.009

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Volume 42, Issue 7 , Pages 490-495, July 2010

Descriptive epidemiology of cholangiocarcinoma in Italy

Domenico Alvaro
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Polo Pontino, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
- Corresponding author at: Università degli Studi di Roma “Sapienza”, Via Roberto Rossellini 51, 00137 Rome, Italy. Tel.: +39 06 49972023; fax: +39 06 4453319.
Emanuele Crocetti
- Tuscany Cancer Registry, Istituto per lo Studio e la Prevenzione Oncologica, Florence, Italy
Stefano Ferretti
- Ferrara Cancer Registry, University of Ferrara, Italy
Maria Consiglia Bragazzi
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Polo Pontino, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
Riccardo Capocaccia
- Cancer Epidemiology Unit, National Center for Epidemiology, Surveillance and Health Promotion, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy
the AISF “Cholangiocarcinoma” committee
- Composition of the AISF (Italian Association for the Study of Liver Disease) “Cholangiocarcinoma” committee: Alvaro Domenico (Coordinator), Benedetti Antonio, Bragazzi Maria Consiglia, Capocaccia Riccardo, Crocetti Emanuele, Fabris Luca, Gianmarco Fava, Ferretti Stefano, Floreani AnnaRosa, Grazi Gianluca, Invernizzi Pietro, Laghi Andrea, Mancino MariaGrazia, Marzioni Marco, Mutignani Massimiliano, Paolantonio Pasquale, Sonzogni Aurelio, Strazzabosco Mario, Stroffolini Tommaso.

Received 22 September 2009; accepted 28 October 2009. published online 21 December 2009.

Abstract

Background

Very little data exist on the epidemiology of cholangiocarcinoma in Italy.

Aim

We focus on the descriptive epidemiology of cholangiocarcinoma in Italy.

Methods

Data on incidence were obtained from the Italian Association of Tumour Registries while mortality data were obtained from the Italian National Institute of Statistics.

Results

A progressive increase of incidence with age was seen for extra-hepatic, intra-hepatic and not otherwise specified cholangiocarcinoma. Crude incidence rates were higher for extra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma than those for intra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma and in men compared to women. An increasing incidence trend was observed, from 1988 to 2005, for both extra-hepatic- and intra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma with a 3–6% yearly increase and with a rate of increase higher for men than for women and for intra-hepatic- than for extra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma. For intra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma, the mortality rates progressively increased from 0.15 per million in 1980 to 5.9 per million in 2003, when mortality for this cancer surpassed extra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma. Mortality rates for extra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma showed an increasing trend from 1980 to 1994 but, in contrast to intra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma, a stable or slightly decreasing trend from 1995 to 2003 was observed.

Conclusions

In Italy, cholangiocarcinoma showed a progressive increase in incidence and mortality in the last two decades mainly in intra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma.

Abbreviations: CCA, cholangiocarcinoma, IH-CCA, intra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma, EH-CCA, extra-hepatic cholangiocarcinoma, NOS, not otherwise specified, IH-BD, intra-hepatic bile ducts, EH-BD, extra-hepatic bile ducts, AK, adenocarcinoma, ISTAT, Italian National Institute of Statistics, AIRTUM, Italian Association of Tumour Registries, ICD, International Classification of Diseases