incidence trends and geographical distribution of nasopharyngeal carcinoma in iran

background : nasopharyngeal carcinoma (npc) is known as a highly distinct kind of head and neck cancer. this distinction is due to its clinical presentation, epidemiology, outcome, and treatment. there have not been any reports of epidemiological analysis of npc in iran. the aim of this study is to evaluate the incidence rates and trends of nasopharyngeal carcinoma in the iranian population during 2004 to 2009. methods: the data were collected from the iranian national cancer data system registry. all the cases of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (with the topography code 11 and histology of carcinoma) were retrieved and analyzed from an overall cancer database during a 6-year period. the data were analyzed using spss, version 16. results: to determine the current incidence of npc in iran, we examined the npc cases from 2004 to2009. a total of 1431 cases (981 male and 450 female npc patients) were analyzed epidemiologically in this study. the mean age of the patients was 47.1 years. the incidence was 0.33 per 100000 persons. the overall incidence rate had increased annually (p <0.05). the incidence of npc gradually increased with age. prefectures bordering the caspian sea proved to have a higher incidence than the other studied areas. conclusion: our study indicated an increasing trend in the incidence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma. therefore; attempts should be precipitated for prevention.