Background: The epidemiology of sebaceous carcinoma (SC) has not previously been examined in a Canadian population.
Objective: To determine the epidemiologic trends of SC in Alberta, Canada, from 1988 to 2007.
Methods: This study was a population-based, retrospective, epidemiologic analysis of SC in Alberta over a 20-year span.
Results: Over the study period, the age-standardized SC incidence increased from 0.22 per 100,000 to 0.65 per 100,000. Sebaceous carcinoma is a cancer that predominantly affects the elderly (over 85% of cases were in persons 60 years or older). Interestingly, the face (37.7% of cases), not the eyelids (26.2% of cases), was the most frequently affected site overall. Gender-specific trends reflected a slight male predominance (1.4:1) and significant differences in anatomic distribution between the sexes.
Conclusion: For unexplained reasons, there has been a threefold increase in SC incidence in Alberta over the last two decades. In addition, there are significant gender-specific differences in the anatomic distribution of SC.