Objective: To investigate recent trends in the incidence of testicular cancer and to describe epidemiological characteristics of various subtypes of testicular cancer.
Design: Descriptive.
Method: Using the nationwide registry of pathology reports (PALGA), the incidence of all newly-diagnosed cases of testicular cancer between the years 1991 and 2002 was analyzed according to age and subtype. To test the accuracy of the PALGA figures, a comparison was made with incidence figures (1991-1998) produced by the Netherlands Cancer Registry.
Results: 5856 cases of testicular cancer were diagnosed. The age-adjusted incidence increased from 4.8 to 6.6 per 100,000. The incidence of non-seminoma increased to a larger extent than that of seminoma. The incidence of malignant lymphoma of testicular origin did not increase, but it remained the most frequent testicular tumour beyond the age of 65. Non-seminoma was the most common tumour below the age of 30, while seminoma was the most commonly found tumour between the ages of 30 and 65. When PALGA began recording statistics, the incidence figures showed a difference of up to 10% with the figures produced by the cancer registry, but this has decreased to 1-2% in more recent years.
Conclusion: The incidence of testicular cancer increased from the 1990s up to 2002. The incidence figures of histopathologically confirmed cases of cancer in the PALGA registry were timely and accurate.