Eye cancer incidence in Singapore

Aim-To describe the epidemiological characteristics of patients with primar y intraocular, conjunctival, and orbital cancers seen in Singapore from 196 8 to 1995. Methods-Epidemiological data of all cancers diagnosed in Singapore are coll ected by the Singapore Cancer Registry. The data of an cases of Singapore r esidents with eye cancers (ICD-9, site 190) were retrieved for analysis. Th is includes intraocular, conjunctival, and orbital cancers but excludes can cer of the eyelids. Results-There were 125 patients of which 67 (53.6%) were male and 58 (46.4% ) were female. The average annual age standardised incidences for male and female Singapore residents were 1.89 and 1.81 per million respectively. The most common cancer was retinoblastoma (53.6%), followed by malignant melan oma (19.2%) and squamous cell carcinoma (11.2%). The most common cancer amo ng patients younger than 15 years was retinoblastoma (95.7%) and that for t hose 15 years and older was malignant melanoma (42.6%). The most common sub site was the retina (53.6%), followed by conjunctiva (12.8%), orbit (8.8%), and lacrimal gland (6.4%). Conclusion-The annual age standardised incidence have been stable for the 2 8 years studied. Retinoblastoma is much more common than melanoma in Singap ore. These expanded epidemiological characteristics serve to provide ophtha lmologists and epidemiologists with a foundation to monitor future disease patterns in Singapore and provide a basis for comparison with other selecte d populations elsewhere.