LONDON (Reuters), Aug 12 - Death rates from breast cancer have fallen markedly in Europe in the past 20 years, thanks largely to better screening and treatment policies, with Iceland and Britain leading the way, researchers said on Thursday.
Dr. Philippe Autier from the International Prevention Research Institute in France and colleagues looked at changes in breast cancer death rates in women in 30 European countries from 1989 to 2006 and found rates fell by around a fifth on average.
But breast cancer mortality in central European countries remained stable or in some cases rose, and the researchers said more efforts were needed to improve diagnosis and treatment to "reduce the avoidable breast cancer mortality" there.
Changes in breast cancer mortality ranged from a 45% decline in Iceland to a 17% increase in Romania, the scientists said in a study in the British Medical Journal.
England and Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland had decreases of 35%, 29%, and 30%.
"Changes in breast cancer mortality after 1988 varied widely between European countries, and the U.K. is among the countries with the largest reductions," they wrote.
Experts commenting on this study, which used World Health Organization data on death rates, said it was more reliable than others that looked at cancer survival rates, since they could be skewed by changes in the number of cases of a disease.
Dr. Autier's team said countries with large declines in death rates, such as Britain, had benefited from comprehensive and organized screening programs, and rapid and general use of the generic breast cancer drug tamoxifen as well as chemotherapy.
"At the other end of the spectrum, in central European countries the small decreases or the continued increase in breast cancer mortality were correlated with low, usually nonorganized, screening activities, low numbers of mammography machines, slow uptake of anticancer drugs, and health expenditures below the European average," they wrote.
But the researchers also noted that in some countries, such as France, Sweden, and Finland, where health spending is relatively high and the focus on breast cancer screening and treatment had been good, death rates were falling less sharply than might have been hoped.
"The decline in breast cancer mortality in France has been quite modest despite this country having one of the highest number of mammography units per million women, having the highest spending on cancer drugs per person in Europe, being at the forefront in use of new costly treatments, and devoting much effort to enhancing adherence to guidelines," they wrote.
Breast cancer mortality declines in Finland, France, and Sweden were 12%, 11%, and 16% respectively.
By Kate Kelland
Source: http://link.reuters.com/bur54n
BMJ 2010.
Last Updated: 2010-08-11 19:52:11 -0400 (Reuters Health)
Related Reading
U.K. cancer survival rates grow, July 14, 2010
U.S. cancer death rates continue drop: report, July 8, 2010
U.K. cancer survival rates, spending lag Europe, February 18, 2010
European cancer rates declining, report indicates, January 7, 2010
U.S. cancer rates continue their decline: report, December 8, 2009
Copyright © 2010 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.
