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. 2019 Aug:5:1-10.
doi: 10.1200/JGO.19.00099.

Trends in Solid Tumor Incidence in Ukraine 30 Years After Chernobyl

Krystle M Leung  1   2 , Galyna Shabat  3   4 , Pamela Lu  1   2 , Adam C Fields  1 , Andrey Lukashenko  3 , Jennifer S Davids  5 , Nelya Melnitchouk  1   2
Affiliations

Trends in Solid Tumor Incidence in Ukraine 30 Years After Chernobyl

Krystle M Leung et al. J Glob Oncol. 2019 Aug.

Abstract

Purpose: There is limited knowledge of the long-term health effects of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident that occurred more than 30 years ago in Ukraine. This study describes trends in the incidence of solid organ malignancy in Ukraine and the five regions most affected by the radioactive fallout.

Methods: The National Cancer Registry of Ukraine was queried for age-standardized incidence rates (ASIRs) of solid organ malignancy in Ukraine and the regions of Kyiv, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, Rivne, and Volyn covering the period of 1999 to 2016. Joinpoint analysis was used to calculate the average annual percentage of change.

Results: The highest burdens of cancer incidence in Ukraine were seen in the lung, stomach, breast, and prostate. We observed significant increases in the ASIRs of colon (average annual percentage of change, 1.5 [95% CI, 1.3 to 1.7]), rectal (0.9 [95% CI, 0.6 to 1.2]), kidney (2.3 [95% CI, 1.8 to 2.9]), thyroid (4.2 [95% CI, 3.1 to 5.3]), breast (1 [95% CI, 0.6 to 1.4]), cervical (0.7 [95% CI, 0.3 to 1.2]), and prostate (3.9 [95% CI, 3.6 to 4.2]) cancers, with decreases in stomach (-2.4 [95% CI, -2.5 to -2.3]) and lung (-1.8 [95% CI, -2.1 to -1.5]) cancers. ASIRs in the affected regions were similar to nationwide rates, with the exception of those for Kyiv.

Conclusion: The incidence rates of many solid organ malignancies in Ukraine are rising. However, the rates of solid organ malignancy in the five regions most affected by fallout did not substantially differ from national patterns, with the exception of those for Kyiv. Ongoing monitoring of cancer incidence in Ukraine is necessary to understand how best to decrease disease burden nationwide and to elucidate the causes of regional variations in ASIRs, such as access to diagnostics and environmental exposures.

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Conflict of interest statement

The following represents disclosure information provided by authors of this manuscript. All relationships are considered compensated. Relationships are self-held unless noted. I = Immediate Family Member, Inst = My Institution. Relationships may not relate to the subject matter of this manuscript. For more information about ASCO's conflict of interest policy, please refer to www.asco.org/rwc or ascopubs.org/jgo/site/misc/authors.html.

No potential conflicts of interest were reported.

Figures

FIG 1
FIG 1
Map of Ukraine and the five regions most affected by the Chernobyl accident. Adapted from Melnitchouk et al and the Humanitarian Data Exchange.
FIG 2
FIG 2
Trends in incidence of cancer in Ukraine from 1999 to 2016. The Ukrainian age-standardized incidence rates (ASIRs) shown are for all residents of Ukraine (male [M] and female [F] combined), with the exception of breast, cervical, and ovarian cancer, which reflect data from women only, and prostate cancer, which reflects data from men only. Average annual percentage of change is represented graphically as a linear regression of each data set.
FIG 3
FIG 3
Trends in cancer incidence in the regions of Volyn, Zhytomyr, Kyiv, Rivne, and Chernihiv. The Ukrainian age-standardized incidence rates (ASIRs) shown are for all residents of the regions (male [M] and female [F] combined), with the exception of breast, cervical, ovarian cancer, which reflect data from women only, and prostate cancer, which reflects data from men only.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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