Cancer incidence rates among Japanese immigrants in the city of São Paulo,Brazil, 1969–78

Cancer incidence rates among first-generation Japanese immigrants in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, were estimated from the data of the São Paulo Cancer Registry during the years 1969 to 1978. From all registered cases, 2,179 cancer cases of Japan-born residents (1,288 males, 891 females) were selected and age-specific and summary age-adjusted incidence rates (AAIR) were calculated for the selected sites of cancer. The AAIR for all sites except non-melanoma skin cancer was 195.2 per 100,000 population (95 percent confidence interval: 176.4–214.1) in males and 147.3 (134.6–160.0) in females. Stomach cancer had the highest incidence rate of all cancers in both sexes (males, 69.3; females, 32.0). This was followed by cancer of the lung (22.5), esophagus (10.2), colon (8.3), and prostate (7.1) in males; and by breast (24.0), cervix (18.0), colon (8.4), and lung (7.2) in females. When these rates were compared with those among Japanese in Japan, cancer of the stomach and rectum revealed significantly lower rates, while non-melanoma skin cancer, and prostate and breast cancer showed higher rates. No significant increase of colorectal cancer was recognized among Japanese immigrants in São Paulo, contrary to the remarkably high rates of colorectal cancer being observed among Japanese immigrants in the U5.Drs Tsugane and Watanabe are in the Epidemiology Division, National Cancer Center Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan. All other authors are in the Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of São Paulo, Brazil. Address reprint requests to Dr Shoichiro Tsugane at 5-1-1, Tsukiji, chuo-ku, Tokyo 104, Japan. This study was supported by a grant-in-aid for the International Science Research Program from the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture, Japan, and by a grant-in-aid for Cancer Research from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Japan.