Family History of Breast and Colorectal Cancer in a Population-Based Cohort in two cities of Argentina

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Breast cancer (BC) and colorectal cancer (CRC) both present a high burden of disease in Argentina. Hence, studying the epidemiology of these tumors constitutes a public health priority. The objective of this study was to describe the prevalence of family history of BC and CRC and to estimate the incidence of these tumors in adults aged between 35 and 74 years from two cities in Argentina: Bariloche and Marcos Paz. METHODS: As part of the prospective population-based cohort CESCAS I (Study of detection and monitoring of cardiovascular disease and risk factors in the Southern Cone of Latin America), individual information on family history of BC and CRC was collected from a representative sample of the cities of Bariloche and Marcos Paz. Cancer cases were investigated using supporting medical documentation. RESULTS: During 2016- 2017, information from 3245 participants was obtained. Family history of CRC was reported by 8.4% of the population, and 15.2% of women reported a family history of BC. The annual incidence for the 2011-2017 period was 55.2/100 000 women aged 35 to 74 years (95%CI: 22.8-133.7) for BC and 38.5/100 000 adults aged 35 to 74 years (95%CI: 15.3-96.8) for CRC.CONCLUSIONS: Besides guaranteeing universal access to screening programs, it is important to evaluate family history of cancer to identify patients with increased risk, who require specific early detection and surveillance algorithms.