An Epidemiological Study of Female Breast Cancer in Sulaymaniyah City, Iraqi Kurdistan

Abstract

Introduction: The present study was aimed at describing the epidemiological characteristics of female breast cancer and explore its main risk factors in Sulaymaniyah city, the Kurdistan region of Iraq.
Material and Methods: The present case-control study was conducted in Sulaymaniyah, the Kurdistan region of Iraq from 2012-2014 in two hospitals. The study sample consisted of 150 women with breast cancer and 150 healthy women. Required data including sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, medical history, and reproductive factors were collected using a questionnaire through face-to-face interviews.
Results: The mean age of the cases and controls was 47.89±10.98 and 47.38±10.87 years respectively. Low level of education was a risk factor for breast cancer, such that breast cancer was significantly less prevalent among women with university education than those with lower education (P=0.001). The likelihood of developing breast cancer in women with a positive family history of cancer was significantly higher (P=0.003). Also, women with rural residency, unemployment, low income, early age of menopause, multigravida (+3), history of abortion, duration of feeding the first and second babies, and obesity were at a significantly higher risk of developing breast cancer (P<0.05).
Conclusion: The Kurdish women in Iraq, develop breast cancer at age range of 40-50 years. Women with low level of education, a positive family history of cancer, rural residency, unemployment, low income, multigravida (+3), history of abortion, and obesity need to be taken into special consideration in order to diagnose breast cancer early and adopt appropriate interventions.