Esophageal Cancer in Sudan: Demographic and Histopathlogical Variations

Abstract

Background: Sudan is experiencing a growing cancer problem. Esophageal cancer (EC) is a devastating disease with high mortality. Our objective was to study the demographic factors and h istopath o logical pattern of EC cancer in Khartoum, Sudan. Methods: In a retrospective cross-sectional study, the records and histopathology reports of all patients diagnosed endoscopically as EC and who were referred to Zain center, a reference histopathology center in Khartoum Sudan, were studied over a 6-month period. Descriptive and simple statistics were used for analysis. Results: Out of 74 histopathologically studied patients, 66 (89.2%) had squamous cell (SCC) cancer (average age 59 y, mainly females) and 8 (10.8%) had adenocarcinoma (AC-average age 69 y) . The female to male ratio is 1.5:1. In females with SCC, the tumors mainly located in the upper and middle thirds of the oesophagus. On the other hand, 6 out of the 8 patients with AC were men, with the tumors located mainly in the lower third. Conclusions: In Khartoum, Sudan, esophageal cancer affects females (predominantlySCC) more than males (predominantly AC). It occurs at a relatively young age, and is predominantly squamous cell in type. No specific risk factors were identified and this needs further studies.