FIVE-YEAR SURVIVAL RATE OF BREAST CANCER PATIENTS IN BRUNEI DARUSSALAM.
E Leong1, F Madli1, SK Ong2,3
1 Faculty of Science, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Jln Tungku Link, Brunei Darussalam,
2NCD Prevention Unit, Ministry of Health, Commonwealth Drive, Brunei Darussalam,
3 Early Detection & Cancer Prevention Services, Pantai Jerudong Specialist Centre, Brunei Darussalam.
Introduction: Breast cancer is the most common cancer and leading cause of cancer deaths among women worldwide. In Brunei Darussalam, breast cancer has the highest incidence rate among women. This study presents the survival rate of women diagnosed with breast cancer in Brunei Darussalam and explores the association between survival and demographic or clinical characteristics. Methods: This is a retrospective study of breast cancer diagnosed from 2007 to 2017 among women in Brunei Darussalam. Cancer data was retrieved from population based cancer registry. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and Log rank test were applied to estimate the survival rates and the association between survival and important patients’ characteristics. Hazard ratios were derived using Cox Proportional Hazard model. Results: The survival rates of breast cancer patients at 1, 3 and 5 years were 89.5%, 79.2% and 72.0% respectively. The 5-year survival rates for cancer stages were 92.2% for localized, 76.9% for regional, and 21.4% for distant metastasis. Ethnicity, cancer stages and cancer stages-morphology interaction were significant independent predictors for breast cancer survival in Brunei Darussalam. Conclusion: The survival rate of women diagnosed with breast cancer in Brunei Darussalam and its significant predictors are similar to those reported from other developed countries. Further studies on predictors such as health seeking behaviours and impact of different cancer treatment will provide further insight in improving survival rates of breast cancer through early cancer detection programmes and strengthening of the healthcare service delivery.
Keywords: Breast cancer; Brunei Darussalam; Death; Hazard rate; Proportional Hazards model; Survival rate.
Corresponding author: Dr. Elvynna Leong, PhD, Department of Mathematical and Computer Science, Faculty of Science, Jalan Tungku Link, Gadong, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Brunei Darussalam, BE 1410. Phone no: +673 2460922 ext 1305; Fax no: +673 2461502
Email: elvynna.leong@ubd.edu.bn
Brunei Int Med J. 2019;15:73-81