Patterns of cancer incidence among US Hispanics/Latinos, 1995-2000

Objective Current and comprehensive data on cancer incidence in US Latinos has been limited. Methods Using a standardized approach to uniformly assign Hispanic/Latino race/ethnicity to cancer records, data from 15 central cancer registries, representing more than 85% of the US Latino population, were included in the analysis. Average annual age-adjusted incidence rates and standard errors were calculated for Hispanic, non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black males and females. To compare cancer incidence among Hispanic and non-Hispanic populations, standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) also were calculated. Results Latino populations had overall lower incidence for all cancers combined and the four leading cancers (breast, prostate, lung and colorectal) than non-Hispanic populations, however, cancers of lesser impact in non-Hispanic populations (liver, gallbladder, stomach, penis and cervix) were more commonly diagnosed among Latinos. Conclusions Understanding the patterns of cancer incidence in this diverse racial/ethnic minority group can serve to both stimulate research into the unique behaviors, exposures and genetics that drive cancer risk among Latinos and to direct prevention and control efforts tailored to this population.