Trends in neuroendocrine tumor-related mortality, 1999–2020: A CDC WONDER database analysis.

Abstract

e18155 Background: Every year, around 6 individuals per 100,000 population in the United States (US) are affected by neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). Although NETs are rare, their incident rates are continuously increasing. This study aims to analyze NET-related mortality trends in the US among the population aged 55 and above and to evaluate shifting trends among different demographics and geographical sub-divisions. Methods: The publicly available database of CDC WONDER was used for retrieving death certificates for patients above 55 years in United States from 1999 to 2020 using ICD-10: C73-C75 (Malignant neoplasms of thyroid and other endocrine glands). Demographic indicators of gender, race, urbanization, census region, and state location were used for calculation age adjusted mortality rates (AAMR) per 100,000 at significant level of p<0.05. Results: A total of 52,465 NET-related deaths occurred in adults aged 55 and above from 1999 to 2020. The overall age-adjusted mortality rate (AAMR) increased from 3.1 in 1999 to 3.5 in 2020. The overall AAMR significantly increased in males and females throughout the study period. In contrast, males continuously had higher AAMR as compared to females (Overall AAMR: Male: 3.3, Female: 3.2). Among races, the overall AAMR was highest in Non-Hispanic (NH) Asians (3.6) followed by Hispanics (3.5), NH whites (3.3) and NH Blacks (3.1). While evaluating the data geographically, non-metropolitan areas had higher overall AAMR (3.4) than metropolitan areas (3.3). Among regions, the West had the highest total AAMR (3.6), followed by the Midwest (3.4), Northeast (3.3) and South (3.1). States with AAMRs included in the top 90th percentile are South Dakota and North Dakota (3.9), California (3.8), Oregon and New Mexico (3.7). Conclusions: There is an increase in overall age-adjusted mortality trends in neuroendocrine tumours in almost all of the demographics and geographic subgroups. This increasing trend stresses the urgent need for targeted interventions and resource allocation to address these disparities and achieve positive results.