Considerable risk factors for malignancies of gastrointestinal tract; A descriptive and inferential case-control study

ABSTRACT

The problem of malignancies of digestive system was studied in a sample of 208 patients who attended the institute of Radiation and Nuclear Medicine from January 1984 to January 1986. Carcinoma of the stomach is the leading cancer in this community and the predominant histopathological findings were adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. Among the socioeconomic factors, people who lived in urban areas are more risky for developing malignancies. Smoking but not alcohol influence the distribution of malignancies, the way of food preparation and the behaviour of intake were considered to be important factors associated with the development of the malignancies of digestive system. People who had a history of alteration of bowel habits are significantly prone to malignancies of G.I.T. regardless of their sites. Results suggest that beside the socio-economic factors, the nature of the diet consumed is consider a high risk factor in the development of gastrointestinal tract malignancy in Iraq