Original article
English
Hamed Bosrewil 1, Adam Elzagheid 2, Kari Syrjنnen 3, Abdulhadi Musa 1
1-Department of Surgery, Al-Arab Medical University, Benghazi, Libya . 2-Department of Pathology, Al-Arab Medical University, Benghazi, Libya. 3-Department of Oncology and Radiotherapy, Turku University Hospital, Finland.
JMJ 2010,Vol.10, No.1:17-21
Abstract
A review of 507 patients with breast cancer diagnosed over the 10 year period (January 1990 to December 1999) at the Breast Clinic, 7th October Hospital and Oncology Department, Jamahiriya Hospital, Benghazi, Libya is presented. Results: The annual incidence of female breast cancer in the Benghazi population at risk (30-64 years) was 23.04 per 100,000, which is similar to that of Nigeria but higher than in other North African countries. Out of all solid tumours, breast cancer accounts for 19% which is lower than in western countries but close to the figures reported in eastern Europe. The peak age was 41-50 years (41.6%), 52% were encountered in premenopausal women, which is in sharp contrast with eastern countries. Stage II (56%) and stage III (30.8%) were the two most common presentations, while stage I was the least common (3%), similar to many developing countries of Asia and Africa. The most common histological type was infiltrating ductal carcinoma (68%). Distant metastases were present in 50.9% of cases, local recurrence was recorded in 25.9% and cancer of the contralateral breast was found in 10.6% of all cases. The most common treatment was surgery (96.2%) and 58.7% of the cases received radiotherapy to loco-regional areas. CMF/FAC chemotherapy was given in 66.3% of the cases, while anti-oestrogen was the most common type of hormone therapy, given for 75.9% of the patients. Conclusion: In our series, 43.3% of the cases are currently under follow-up, of whom 27.9% of the cases are N.E.D., and altogether, 25.0% of the patients died. Clearly, the prognosis can be improved by providing early and more accurate diagnosis as well as better treatment facilities.
Keywords: Breast cancer, Libyan women, Descriptive epidemiology, Diagnosis, Treatment, Prognosis.
Link/DOI: http://www.jmj.org.ly/images/stories/spring2010/17.pdf