Prevalence, Stage and Sociodemographic Pattern of Breast Cancer in a Tertiary Health Institution, South West Nigeria

Background: Breast cancer is the commonest cancer found amongst women in Nigeria. It is a major cause of cancer mortality. The prevalence and presentation of breast cancer varies with the Socio-demographic pattern. The stage at presentation also determines the outcome. The burden of Breast cancer is high among women of all age groups in Nigeria. The prevalence of Breast cancer among women in Ondo state South West Nigeria is increasing and majority of the women present in the advance form of the disease. Objectives: To determine the Prevalence, stage and Sociodemographic factors associated with Breast Cancer. Method: The study is a retrospective analysis of clinical records of confirmed breast cancer patients between March 2013 and April 2019 attending the Oncology outpatient clinic at University of Medical Science Teaching Hospital, Akure, Ondo state Nigeria. The socio-demographic data were collated and analyzed. Results: A total of Four hundred breast cancer patients were seen. Their ages ranged from 20 to 89 years with a (mean age of 48.4 +/- 12.9 years). The Median age of 49.4 years. 99% were females and majority (68%) was premenopausal. Those younger than 40 years constituted 37.5% of the sample population while those older constituted 74.5%. The peak age of incidence was in the 4th decade. Majority of the participants 53.2% completed secondary education and 43% of the population had stage 4 disease. Conclusion: Breast cancer is the commonest cancer in women. The level of education does not correlate with a better knowledge of the disease and majority of the women presented with advance stage of the disease.