Definition

Rate of newly reported cases of prostate cancer per 100,000 population.

Numerator

Number of newly reported cases of prostate cancer for a specific time period

Denominator

Mid-year resident population for a specific time period

Data Interpretation Issues

Cancer cases do not include in situ. Mortality rates may vary from source to source. This may be due to using provisional data or using different population databases. The cancer mortality rates provided by the [http://dhss.alaska.gov/dph/chronic/pages/cancer/registry.aspx Alaska Cancer Registry] use population estimates provided by the [http://seer.cancer.gov/ Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program (SEER)] of the [http://www.cancer.gov/ National Cancer Institute]. In contrast, [http://dhss.alaska.gov/dph/VitalStats/Pages/data/default.aspx Alaska Vital Statistics] uses [http://live.laborstats.alaska.gov/pop/index.cfm population estimates] provided by the State Demographer in the [http://laborstats.alaska.gov/ Research and Analysis Section] of the [http://labor.alaska.gov/ Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development].

Why Is This Important?

Prostate cancer is the most commonly occurring cancer among U.S. men (excluding basal and squamous cell skin cancers). It is estimated that in the United States in 2018, 164,690 cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed and 29,430 people will die of the disease. About 1 in 9 men (11%) in the U.S. will develop prostate cancer during their lifetime.^1^ Prostate cancer occurs mostly in older men. About 6 in 10 cases occur in men over 65, and the average age at time of diagnosis is 66. Most men diagnosed with prostate cancer do not die from it. The U.S. relative survival rate for prostate cancer after 5 years is about 99%. After 10 years the rate is about 98%, and after 15 years it is about 96%.^2^ It is not known exactly what causes prostate cancer, but some risk factors include older age, Black race, a family history of prostate cancer, and a diet high in red meats, high-fat dairy products, or calcium.^2^ Incidence rates tell us about the rate at which new cases of a condition occur. As such, the incidence rate of prostate cancer is an important indicator of the burden of this type of cancer in Alaska, allowing us to monitor how this burden changes over time and also to compare this burden among sub-populations.[[br]] [[br]] ---- {{class .SmallerFont 1. [http://www.cancer.org/cancer/prostatecancer/detailedguide/prostate-cancer-key-statistics What are the key statistics about prostate cancer?] [[br]] 2. [http://www.cancer.org/cancer/prostatecancer/detailedguide/prostate-cancer-risk-factors What are the risk factors for prostate cancer?] }}

How Are We Doing?

Prostate cancer in Alaska is ranked #3 for the number of cancer incident cases over the time period 2011-2015. Rates of prostate cancer have declined over the last decade in both Alaska and the U.S. Around the state for 1996-2015, the incidence of prostate cancer ranged from a high of 155.7 per 100,000 males in Wrangell-Petersburg Census Area to a low of 30.6 per 100,000 males in Bethel Census Area, compared to the statewide rate of 128.5. There were several boroughs for which rates were not calculated because they had less than 6 cases. Prostate cancer incidence is strongly correlated with race. For 1996-2015, Blacks had the highest rate by far than any other race at 216.6 per 100,000 males, compared to 136.6 for Whites, 91.6 for Asian/Pacific Islanders, and Alaska Natives had the lowest rate by far at 68.9.

How Do We Compare With the U.S.?

Alaska's prostate cancer rates weren't much different from the U.S. rates until 2005, after which they were consistently lower than the U.S. rates. Both rates are decreasing with time. In 2015, Alaska's prostate cancer rate was 61.0 per 100,000 males compared with the U.S. rate of 95.3 in 2014.

Data Notes

Click on the icon to the lower right of the graph to display confidence intervals. [[br]] Rates are age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population. [[br]] Numerator is the number of cases.

Data Notes

Click on the icon to the lower right of the graph to display confidence intervals. [[br]] Rates are age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population. [[br]] Numerator is the number of cases. [[br]] Upper Confidence Limits were truncated at 300 for graphical display purposes; Bristol Bay=1218.9. [[br]] Rates based on fewer than 20 occurrences are statistically unreliable and should be used with caution. [[br]] Statistics are not displayed due to fewer than 6 cases and are denoted by **.

Data Source

[http://dhss.alaska.gov/dph/Chronic/Pages/Cancer/registry.aspx Alaska Cancer Registry], Health Analytics and Vital Records Section (HAVRS), Division of Public Health, Alaska Department of Health and Social Services

Data Notes

Click on the icon to the lower right of the graph to display confidence intervals. [[br]] Rates are age-adjusted to the 2000 U.S. standard population. [[br]] Numerator is the number of cases.

Data Source

[http://dhss.alaska.gov/dph/Chronic/Pages/Cancer/registry.aspx Alaska Cancer Registry], Health Analytics and Vital Records Section (HAVRS), Division of Public Health, Alaska Department of Health and Social Services

References and Community Resources

'''References:''' 1. [http://www.cancer.org/cancer/prostatecancer/detailedguide/prostate-cancer-key-statistics What are the key statistics about prostate cancer?] 2. [http://www.cancer.org/cancer/prostatecancer/detailedguide/prostate-cancer-risk-factors What are the risk factors for prostate cancer?] '''Resources:''' [http://dhss.alaska.gov/dph/Chronic/Pages/Cancer/registry.aspx Alaska Cancer Registry] [http://dhss.alaska.gov/dph/Chronic/Pages/Cancer/comprehensive.aspx Alaska Comprehensive Cancer Control Program] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/npcr/ National Program of Cancer Registries] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [https://nccd.cdc.gov/uscs/ U.S. Cancer Statistics] [http://www.cancer.gov National Cancer Institute] National Cancer Institute. [http://seer.cancer.gov/ SEER Program] [http://www.cancer.org American Cancer Society]