SECULAR TREND AND AGE-PERIOD-COHORT ANALYSIS OF PROSTATE-CANCER MORTALITY IN TAIWAN

Purpose: We evaluated the secular mortality trend of prostate cancer i n Taiwan from 1964 through 1994. Materials and Methods: Analyses were based on vital statistics. Relative risks associated with each of the age, period and cohort effects on secular mortality were estimated fro m a log-linear Poisson model. Results: Age adjusted mortality rates in creased more than 2-fold during the last 30 years in Taiwan. Age-perio d-cohort analysis showed that the age effect was the strongest. Conclu sions: Factors related to aging are the main reason for the increase i n prostate cancer mortality in Taiwan during the last 3 decades.