TY  -  JOUR
AU  -  Mangone, Lucia
AU  -  Giorgi Rossi, Paolo
AU  -  Pinto, Carmine
AU  -  Serraino, Diego
AU  -  Rugge, Massimo
T1  -  Cancer trends in women in Italy
PY  -  2021
Y1  -  2021-09-01
DO  -  10.1723/3673.36594
JO  -  The Italian Journal of Gender-Specific Medicine
JA  -  Ital J Gender-Specific Med
VL  -  7
IS  -  3
SP  -  155
EP  -  163
PB  -  Il Pensiero Scientifico Editore
SN  -  2612-3487
Y2  -  2026/05/02
UR  -  http://dx.doi.org/10.1723/3673.36594
N2  -  Summary. Cancer trends in Italy are traced and studied through population-based Cancer Registries (CRs): data is used to support the planning of health interventions but, so far, attention to gender differences has been relatively limited. The aim of this work is to describe time trends in cancer incidence and the prevalence of the main risk and protective factors in females in Italy, by geographic areas. The data produced and published by the CRs and the National Health Interview Survey (The Italian National Institute of Statistics – Istat) were analyzed by sex. In Italy, an estimated 377,000 new cancer cases were diagnosed in 2020 (52% in males and 48% in females), while 173,000 deaths from malignant cancer (55% in males and 45% in females) were registered. Breast cancer alone accounts for 30% of all neoplasms in women, followed by colorectal cancer (11%) and lung cancer (7%). Overall, the 5-year female survival in all three cancers was 63%; however, in older women and in those living in the Southern regions this percentage was lower for all three cancers. In women, the trend in all cancers was substantially heterogeneous across the Italian regions, with the Southern ones experiencing stable incidence and a slight decrease in mortality, and the Northern ones showing a marked decreasing trend in both incidence and mortality. Obesity and low levels of physical activity are more prevalent among women in the South than in the North, and screening coverage remains lower in the South. The prevalence of smoking is similar in young and middle-aged women throughout Italy, but is lower among older women in the Southern regions. A late implementation of oncological screening and a limited awareness of the most correct lifestyles still constitute health disadvantages for women living in Southern regions.
ER  -