The pattern of malignant tumours in northern Pakistan.

A retrospective study of 14,018 malignant tumours from northern Pakistan is presented. The data reflects the pattern of cancer distribution in this region. Among males most common sites are lymphnode, leukemia, skin, prostate, colorectal, bone and stomach and in females breast, skin, ovary, leukemia, gall-bladder, thyroid and bone. The distribution of malignant tumours in various districts of northern Pakistan and different ethnic groups like Pathans, Punjabis and Urdu speaking have also been outlined. Age standardized cancer ratio (ASCAR) was calculated to compare the data from the neighbouring countries of the region. Prostatic cancer in males and gall-bladder carcinoma in females is more frequent in our material as compared to other countries of the region. Comparison of the pattern of malignant tumours in North and South has also been highlighted.