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Incidence and spatial distribution of adult-onset primary malignant and other central nervous system tumors in Southern Sardinia, Italy

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Abstract

Purpose

To study for the first time the incidence of adult-onset CNS tumors in Southern Sardinia, Italy.

Methods

Clinical records of patients > 18 years old who were diagnosed with primary CNS tumors during 2016–2019 in the study area were reviewed. Meningiomas, cranial/paraspinal nerve tumors, lymphomas, and pituitary tumors were excluded. Cases were classified according to the 2016 WHO classification of CNS tumors and to the morphology codes from the International Classification of Diseases—Oncology, third edition. Age-adjusted incidence rates were calculated by the direct method to the 2011–2020 European standard population. Kulldorff’s spatial scan statistic was used to identify geographic clusters of patients who shared increased/decreased tendency to develop CNS tumors.

Results

CNS tumors were diagnosed in 234 incident patients, but histological diagnosis was available in 222/234 patients (95%) aged 64.3 ± 13.5 years at diagnosis. Crude incidence rate was 7.1 per 100,000 persons-year (95% CI, 6.2–8.1), 6.2 per 100,000 persons-year (95% CI, 5.4–7.0) when age-adjusted. CNS tumors were more frequent in men and after age 40. Glioblastoma accounted for 76% of the total (adjusted rate, 4.7 per 100,000 persons-year; 95% CI, 4.0–5.4). Spatial analysis revealed geographic variations of glioblastoma incidence within the study area.

Conclusion

Although the distribution of tumor diagnoses in Sardinia reflects expected age and gender-related patterns in western populations, our findings would indicate a slightly higher incidence of glial tumors, glioblastoma in particular, in Sardinia than in other European countries. The identification of spatial clusters of high/low risk will serve as a resource for etiological research.

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Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Vincenzo Pierri and Sabino Dagostino are equally contributed in this work

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Sciences and Public Health, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy

    Vincenzo Pierri, Sabino Dagostino, Tommaso Ercoli, Giuseppe Piga, Valerio Melas, Alberto Maleci & Giovanni Defazio

  2. “Rita Levi Montalcini” Department of Neuroscience, University of Turin, Turin, Italy

    Rosario Vasta

  3. Oncologico Businco Hospital, Cagliari, Italy

    Francesca Bruder

  4. Department of Neurosurgery, AO Brotzu, Cagliari, Italy

    Carlo Conti & Pier Francesco Cappai

  5. Service of Pathological Anatomy, Azienda Ospedaliera “G. Brotzu”, Cagliari, Italy

    Cristina Manieli

  6. Neurology Service and Stroke Unit, Department of Neuroscience, AO Brotzu, Cagliari, Italy

    Maurizio Melis

  7. Institute of Neurology, Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria Di Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy

    Gianluca Floris, Marta Melis, Antonella Muroni & Giovanni Defazio

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  1. Vincenzo Pierri
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  2. Sabino Dagostino
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tommaso Ercoli.

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The study was approved by the local Institutional Review Board and conducted in line with the ethical rules for data collection.

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Pierri, V., Dagostino, S., Vasta, R. et al. Incidence and spatial distribution of adult-onset primary malignant and other central nervous system tumors in Southern Sardinia, Italy. Neurol Sci 43, 419–425 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-021-05747-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-021-05747-5

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