ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Gastrointestinal malignancies are among the most common cancers suffered by Cubans. The purpose of our study is to analyse the evolution of digestive cancer mortality in Cuba. METHODS: Mortality data for this study were obtained from the National Medical Records and Health Statistic Bureau. Trends (1987-2008) in age-standardized cancer mortality were described using joinpoint regression. RESULTS: In the data set of digestive cancer mortality, in the period 1987-2008, colorectal/anal cancer was the most frequent cause of cancer mortality in males and females. In men, a rise in mortality was observed for cancer of the oesophagus between 2001 and 2008, and pancreatic cancer showed a slight mortality rise for the period 1987-2008. In women, colorectal/anal cancer increased from 1989 to 2001. A mortality increase was observed for oesophageal cancer in the period 2005-08. The result of the joinpoint analysis for the age group of 35-64 years was consistent with those for overall mortality. CONCLUSION: The trend in mortality from digestive cancer in Cuba shows differences depending on sex, age and type of tumour. The Cuban health system has seen improvements in diagnostic systems, which has contributed even better diagnoses of digestive diseases.
Subject(s)
Digestive System Neoplasms/mortality , Mortality/trends , Adult , Age Distribution , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Colorectal Neoplasms/mortality , Confidence Intervals , Cost of Illness , Cuba/epidemiology , Death Certificates , Esophageal Neoplasms/mortality , Female , Humans , Incidence , Male , Middle Aged , Pancreatic Neoplasms/mortality , Population Surveillance , Risk Factors , Sex DistributionABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Recent studies suggest that celiac disease (CD) is common in many developing countries. Because the disease may be under diagnosed in Cuba, we studied the presence of the disease in a group of apparently healthy adult. AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: It was to assess for the first time, the presence of silent CD in a cohort of healthy Cuban adults individuals and to evaluate the tools for diagnosis of CD in this group. METHODS: A total of 200 healthy Cuban adult from Havana City were evaluated. Tissue transglutaminase antibodies (tTGA) were determined by one-step immunochromatographic assay and by commercial ELISA kit. CD specific human leukocyte antigen (HLA) typing was performed by polymerase chain reaction amplification, using sequence-specific primers. In the subject positive for tTGA, the CD was confirmed by intestinal biopsy. RESULTS: From the 200 studied individuals, only one subject was identified as positive by both assays, being submitted to duodenal biopsy. Morphological changes consistent with CD were found and also supported by HLA-DQ2 (HLA-DQA1*0501-DQB1*02). In the follow-up after one year, histological recovery was assessed by a second intestinal biopsy and the serological marker became negative. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms the existence of silent CD among healthy adult in Cuba and highlights the importance of mass screening for this disease among them. The one-step immunochromatographic assay is a good tool for this purpose.
