In the present study, overall, pancreatic cancer has been increasing trend in the frequency of patients in terms of time, and we see an increase in the number of patients from 14 in 2008 to 41 in 2018. Pancreatic cancers were more common in men than women. The highest number of subjects was in the age group between 60–69 year, and the lowest frequency was in the age group of ≥ 49 year. There was a significant relationship between aging and the frequency of pancreatic cancers. Most of the subjects were married and urban. The occupations of the majority of the subjects were unemployed. The majority of pancreatic cancers were Adenocarcinoma (66.7%). there was no statistically significant relationship between smoking, alcohol and drugs and pancreatic cancer.
Siri and Salehinyia found that the incidence and mortality rate of pancreatic cancer increased in Iran, the average age of subjects was 63 years. The incidence rate was 1.18 and 0.84 in men and women per 100,000 healthy people, respectively. Smoking, aging and lifestyle are the most important factors in cancer. Due to the lack of clear symptoms and markers in the diagnosis of the disease at the early stages, these patients are usually diagnosed at the advanced stages and have a low survival rate. The incidence increased with age, and the survival rate was relatively low [11]. This survey is consistent with the findings of present study.
Another study concluded that men are more likely to come down with this disease than women. The prevalence of this cancer was 9.8 in total, which were 11.9 in the male population and 5.7 in the female population per 100,000 of people. The average age of the subjects was 65.7 years. The minimum and the maximum age of patients were 12 and 94 years, respectively. The prevalence was 58.9% higher in men than women and 82% of the participants were between 40 and 80 years [18]. In the present study, the prevalence was higher in men and the average age of the subjects was 66.3 years, which is consistent with the findings of this study.
Rawla et al. In a review study in 2019 inferred that the most common type of pancreatic cancer is adenocarcinoma, which accounts for about 85% of cases and has a lower prognosis than other types of pancreatic cancers [19]. Based on the pathological evaluations, most of cases were adenocarcinoma, which is consistent with the findings of this study.
The incidence of pancreatic cancer is more in the eighth decade of life [8]. Smoking is the most common known risk factor, and is the cause of 20–25% of all pancreatic tumors. Alcohol does not seem to be a risk factor, unless it leads to chronic
pancreatitis, which is a probable risk factor [20]. Increased smoking in developing countries, quick diagnosis and rising life are all likely to increase the global burden of pancreatic cancer in the future. In an analysis of data from 48 countries, they found rising incidence and mortality trends in pancreatic cancer-especially among people over 50 years of age [21]. The incidence and mortality rate of pancreatic cancer is steadily increasing with age. Actually, men are more likely to develop this carcinoma than women. Smoking, aging, and lifestyle changes are the most important risk factors for pancreatic cancer in Iran. Due to the lack of initial symptoms or a specific marker for early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, this cancer is detected lately and therefore low survival rate is observed [11]. Zahir et al. [13] conducted a study in Yazd in 2001–2011 and concluded that the incidence of pancreatic cancer increased from 0.55 in 2001 to 1.68 per 100,000 in 2011. The standardized incidence rate for age in 2001 and 2011 was 0.75 and 2.68, respectively. There was a significant rise in the incidence of cancer in 11 years of study in Yazd [8]. In the present study, pancreatic cancer had a rising pattern during a ten years period (2008–2018).
The etiology of pancreatic cancer is still insufficiently known, although some risk factors have been identified, such as Substance abuse, positive family history and genetics, dietary factors, and physical inactivity. There are no current screening recommendations for pancreatic cancer, so primary prevention is of utmost importance.