Pattern of head and neck cancer in Yemen.

Head and neck cancer constitutes one of the commonest malignancies in Yemen. There may be a role for the use of Shamma and Zarda and Khat for the increase of HNC in Yemen. This study was conducted retrospectively with an overall aim to describe the pattern of head and neck cancers among Yemeni patients attending the Oncology Department of Al-Gamhouria Teaching Hospital, Aden, for the period from Jan. 2001 to Dec. 2004. The study included 183 patients with head and neck cancers (Lymphoma and thyroid were excluded), 134 were males (73.2%) and 49 were females (26.8%) , with male to female ratio of 2.7:1. The mean age was 51.3 +/- 14.9 years (range: 3 - 82 years). Statistically, there is significant difference between the mean age of male (49.5 +/- 15.1 years) and female (45.4 +/- 16.3 years) patients with head and neck cancers [t= 2.1, p: 0.03]. The common types of head and neck cancers in this study are cancers of the oral cavity (31.7%), followed by pharyngeal (22.9%) and laryngeal (19.1%). In relation to sex, there is a significant statistical relationship between certain head and neck cancers and sex (p: 0.0000). In males, the common cancers are oral cavity cancers (22.7%), laryngeal (22.1%) and pharyngeal cancers (20.8%). The common histopathological type of head and neck cancers in this study is the well differentiated squamous cell carcinoma (70.5%). This study concluded that head and neck cancers are among the common health problems affecting Yemeni patients and recommended further wide national studies to determine the real incidence and the risk factors associated with such cancer.