Population-based survival of lymphoid neoplasms: Twenty years of epidemiological data in the Girona province, Spain

Background: The aim of this study was to describe survival of lymphoid neoplasms (LNs) in the Girona province (Spain) during 1996-2015. Methods: Data were extracted from the Girona cancer registry. LN incident cases were registered using the ICD-O3, following the 2008 WHO classification scheme and HAEMACARE grouping. Follow-up was available until the 31/12/2015. Observed and relative survival (RS) were estimated with Kaplan-Meier and Pohar Perme methods, respectively. Results: 4294 LNs diagnosed over a 20-year period were included in the survival analyses. 5-year RS was 62.3 % (95 % confidence interval (CI): 60.4-64.4), and ranged from 88.5%-41.1% according to subtype. Findings were similar between men and women, while survival decreased markedly with age. RS for all LNs improved during the first two periods of study, being 56.5 % (95 % CI: 53.1-60.0) in 1996-2002, 64.8 % (95 % CI: 61.7-68.2) in 2003-2008, and 65.6 % (95 % CI: 62.0-69.5) in 2009-2015. This pattern was mostly attributed to an improved survival of mature B-cell neoplasms, yet only statistically significant differences were reported for follicular lymphoma and mantle cell lymphoma subtypes. Conclusions: Our study provides estimates of survival in LNs and its subtypes, allowing comparisons between countries. Survival for overall cases improved across the period of study, yet rates are still poor for most subtypes, evidencing the need of therapeutic research programs.