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Aetiology

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Colorectal Cancer

Part of the book series: Recent Results in Cancer Research ((RECENTCANCER,volume 83))

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Abstract

The descriptive epidemiology of colorectal cancer in England and Wales presented in some detail in Chapter 1 gives little clue to its aetiology. Its incidence shows that there are no marked differences according to social class or to region of the country, and no marked change over time. Few occupational associations have been reported apart from asbestos exposure, and this has not been a consistent observation. Moreover, the finding by Newhouse and Wagner (1969) that some peritoneal mesotheliomas in asbestos workers were misdiagnosed and described on death certificates as colon cancers raises further doubts about the association. Nevertheless, the marked international variation in incidence together with the much lower incidence among blacks in Africa than in those in the United States point to the importance of environmental factors in the causation of these cancers.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cancer Research Campaign, Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford, OX2 6HE, UK

    L. J. Kinlen

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  1. L. J. Kinlen
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiation Oncology, Western General Hospital, Crewe Road, EH4 2XU, Edinburgh, UK

    William Duncan

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© 1982 Springer-Verlag Berlin · Heidelberg

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Kinlen, L.J. (1982). Aetiology. In: Duncan, W. (eds) Colorectal Cancer. Recent Results in Cancer Research, vol 83. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-81802-8_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-81802-8_2

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-81804-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-81802-8

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