[Epidemiology of cancer of the exocrine pancreas 1979-88 in the area of Dresden].

In the catchment area of two Pathological Institutes in Saxony with a population of approximately 1.3 million people all autopsies with the diagnosis of exocrine pancreatic cancer were evaluated with respect to age and the number of autopsies carried out in the period of the past ten years (1979-1988). The trend of this type of cancer within this group of all dissected cancer patients was followed. Absolute increase rates of 48% for males and 32% females could be calculated. An increasing incidence of pancreatic cancer was observed not only in the 7th and 8th decade of live--as was typical so far--but also from the age of 50 years onwards. Rates of increase were also found with regard to all cancer autopsies: 6% for males and 34% for females. The data agree with other observations of an increased pancreatic cancer incidence in all industrialized countries.