Pattern of cancer in Madina Al-Munawara region.

This is a retrospective study of 2237 histologically proven cases of cancer over a 12 year period from 1981 to 1993. There were 1687 (75.4%) Saudi and 550 (24.6%) non-Saudi patients. Among both sexes, the most common malignancies were from the gastrointestinal tract (29.3%), lymphoma/leukemia (18.4%), head and neck (8.8%) and breast (8.5%). The most common malignancies among males were lymphoma/leukemia, hepatoma, skin and stomach. Among females, the order of frequency of malignancy was breast, lymphoma/leukemia, esophagus, colon and thyroid. Comparison with other leading studies of the Kingdom has been made. The most common malignancies were discussed with the possible etiological factors.