Trends of Thyroid Cancer Mortality Rates in Ecuador

Objective: To analyze thyroid cancer (TC) mortality rates from 1990 to 2016 in Ecuadorian men and women and compare their trends with Latin American and international trends. Design: A population-based temporal-trend study using the database of the Ecuadorian National Death Registry. Methods: Crude and age-adjusted mortality rates were calculated, and age-related mortality rates were standardized with the world population (WHO). Trends in age-standardized mortality rates were estimated by join point regression analysis. The trends were expressed as annual percentage change (APC) and average annual percentage change (AAPC). Results: In total, TC caused 2,107 deaths (1,475 women and 632 men) in the selected period. The mortality in men showed a statistically non-significant decrease. The estimated APC was −0.4% (P = 0.70), and the average AAPC was −0.4% (P = 0.70) without any identified jointpoint. In women, the mortality decreased significantly between 1990 and 1998, with the estimated APC being −6.6% (P < 0.05). However, it increased significantly from 1998 to 2016, with the estimated APC of 5.4% (P < 0.05), and a jointpoint was identified; the AAPC was 1.4 (P = 0.30). Conclusions: While TC mortality in Ecuadorian men showed a decrease, that in Ecuadorian women showed an initial decrease and a final increase. Our findings can be contrasted with the global data, which show decreases in TC mortality in both sexes.