Cancer incidence, mortality and survival for Pacific Peoples in Aotearoa New Zealand.

AIMS: Pacific Peoples comprise over 16 culturally diverse ethnic groups and experience a disproportionate burden of preventable cancers, attributable to infectious diseases and obesity. This study aims to provide updated evidence on cancer incidence, mortality and survival rates among Pacific Peoples in Aotearoa New Zealand. METHODS: The study extracted incident cases of cancer diagnosed between 2007-2019 from the New Zealand Cancer Registry (NZCR) and linked them to the national Mortality Collection to determine individuals who died of cancer over the study period. The study also compared cancer survival rates between Pacific and European peoples in Aotearoa New Zealand. The most commonly diagnosed cancers and the most common causes of cancer death among Pacific Peoples were identified, and key findings were summarised. The European population was utilised as the comparator group for the analyses. The study employed a total ethnicity approach, wherein anyone with a record of Pacific ethnicity was classified as Total Pacific, regardless of other ethnicities. The age- and sex-standardised incidence and mortality rates were calculated, and 1-, 3- and 5-year survival rates determined. We used Cox proportional-hazards models to compare survival outcomes between Pacific and European peoples. CONCLUSIONS: The study results revealed that Pacific Peoples in Aotearoa New Zealand experience higher cancer incidence and a lower survival rate for several cancers, including lung, liver and stomach cancers, when compared to the European population. This study underscores the need for intervention to reduce the burden of cancer among Pacific Peoples and improve cancer outcomes. This study's findings can inform planning and delivery of interventions to achieve equitable outcomes across the cancer continuum for Pacific Peoples in Aotearoa New Zealand.

The past, present and future of liver cancer control for Maori.

Liver cancer is among the most commonly diagnosed and least-survivable cancers in New Zealand. There are stark disparities between the Indigenous Maori population in incidence of and mortality from liver cancer relative to non-Maori. In this review, we have summarised the key risk factors for liver cancer, and the key activities undertaken in New Zealand, over time, to control this disease, with a focus on how risk factors and interventions aimed at reducing them differentially impact Maori. We have conducted a narrative literature review. The disproportionate burden of liver cancer experienced by Maori is primarily driven by disparities in viral exposure to hepatitis B and C between ethnic groups. Efforts to control hepatitis-associated liver cancer in New Zealand have lacked national coordination, further driving disparities in liver cancer survival between Maori and NZ Europeans. A national primary care-based programme to detect and treat hepatitis B and C and to screen for liver cancer among high-risk patients, along with renewed effort to maximise hepatitis B vaccination rates, has the potential to substantially reduce the burden of hepatitis-associated liver cancer and address a significant health disparity between Maori and non-Maori.