Cancer in Kampala, Uganda, in 1989–91: Changes in incidence in the era of aids

TLDR

The re‑establishment of the Kyadondo County cancer registry enabled estimation of incidence rates for September 1989–December 1991. The study compared these incidence rates with earlier local data and with other African cancer registries. Kaposi’s sarcoma became the leading cancer in males and the second most common in females, mirroring the AIDS epidemic, while incidence of oesophageal and prostatic cancers rose, penile and bladder cancers fell—likely due to better hygiene—and cervical cancer in women more than doubled since the 1950s, reaching among the highest rates in Africa.

Abstract

Abstract Re‐establishment of the cancer registry in Kyadondo County, Uganda, has allowed estimation of incidence rates for the period September 1989 to December 1991. The results are compared with earlier data from the same area, and from other African cancer registries. The most striking feature is the emergence of Kaposi's sarcoma as the leading cancer in males (almost half of all registered cases) and the second most frequent (17.9%) in females. This parallels the evolution of the epidemic of AIDS. There were also marked increases in the incidence of both oesophageal and prostatic carcinoma, while the incidence of cancer of the penis and the urinary bladder declined, possibly as a result of improved standards of hygiene. In females, the incidence of cancer of the cervix has more than doubled since the 1950s, and is now among the highest recorded in the African continent.