Gender Differences in Oesophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma in a South African Tertiary Hospital

Lucien Ferndale, Colleen Aldous, Richard Hift and Sandie Thomson
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Lucien Ferndale: Department of Surgery, Greys Hospital, Pietermaritzburg 3200, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa
Colleen Aldous: College of Health Sciences, School of Clinical Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4013, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa
Richard Hift: College of Health Sciences, School of Clinical Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4013, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa
Sandie Thomson: Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7925, South Africa

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 19, 1-9

Abstract: (1) Oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma is common in Africa and has a male preponderance. The gender-based differences in clinical presentation and risk factor exposure are poorly studied in the African context. Our aim was to compare males and females with this disease. We analyzed the differences in clinical features and risk factor exposure between males and females with oesophageal cancer. (2) Data from patients presenting to a tertiary hospital in South Africa with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma were analyzed. Data collected included patient demographics, clinical presentation, pathology and risk factor exposure. (3) Three hundred and sixty three patients were included in the study. The male to female ratio was 1.4:1. The mean age was 66 years for females and 61 years for males ( p < 0.0001). A significantly larger percentage of males were underweight compared to females (60% vs. 32%, p < 0.001). There were no differences between the genders with regards to performance status, dysphagia grade and duration and tumor length, location and degree of differentiation. There were significant differences between risk factor exposure between the two genders. Smoking and alcohol consumption was an association in more than 70% of males but in less than 10% of females There was no difference survival. (4) Female patients with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) are older and have a higher body mass index (BMI) than their male counterparts. Traditionally purported risk factors of smoking and alcohol consumption are infrequent associations with OSCC in female patients and other environmental risk factors may be more relevant in this gender.

Keywords: oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma; risk factor exposure 2; gender differences (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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