Breast cancer treatment and its impact on survival in Morocco: a study over a decade.

BACKGROUND: In Morocco, much progress has been made in breast cancer treatment. However, there is limited information on survival outcomes of breast cancer patients according to their therapeutic management. METHODS: A pattern-of-care study was conducted in Morocco's two main oncology centres: Rabat and Casablanca and has shown that major progress has been made in the quality of care with survival rates comparable to those in developed countries. The present study focuses on the different therapeutic strategies used in breast cancer and their impact on prognosis. Patients were classified into two categories: those considered as appropriately managed and those who were not. RESULTS: A total of 1901 women with stage I to III breast cancer were included in this study, the majority (53%) were adequately managed and had better disease-free survival (DFS) rates than those who were not: DFS at 3 years (88% versus 62%) and at 5 years (80% versus 50%). Potential significant determinants of better management were: treatment in Rabat's oncology centre, treatment between 2008 and 2012, being aged younger than 60 years, and early TN stage. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated the value of proper integrated and coordinated management in a comprehensive cancer centre, to improve breast cancer survival.

Impact of CBE-based screening program on care pathway, stage at diagnosis, nature of treatment, and overall survival among breast cancer patients in Morocco.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to indirectly examine whether the implementation of clinical breast examination-based screening program in Morocco has been successful in downstaging and improving survival rates. Breast cancer patients detected through the screening pathway were compared with those detected through self-referral over the same period in terms of cancer stage at diagnosis, tumor characteristics, care delays, and survival. METHODS: A prospective observational study was conducted between April 2019 and August 2020 at two major public oncology centers. RESULTS: A total of 896 women with confirmed breast cancer were recruited (483 were program-referred and 413 were self-referred). The authors did not report any significant difference between the two groups in terms of stage at diagnosis, molecular profile, or histopathological grade. Early-stage cancer (stage I-II) was detected in 55.7% of self-referred participants compared to 55.5% of program-referred participants. Median intervals between symptom recognition, pathological diagnosis, and treatment initiation were not significantly different between the two groups. Similarly, survival after treatment showed no significant difference between patients screened by the program and self-referred patients. The 3-year survival rate after treatment was 94.5% for patients referred through the program and 88.6% for patients not referred through the program (p = .16). CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the importance of equitable and timely access to high-quality diagnosis and treatment facilities, leading to substantial downstaging and enhanced survival rates. Continued efforts to improve quality and expand coverage to include asymptomatic women will consolidate the health infrastructure gains achieved by the Moroccan breast cancer screening program.

Stage at diagnosis of colorectal cancer in the Middle East and Northern Africa: A population-based cancer registry study.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the 2nd most common cancer and 3rd most common cause of death in the Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA) region. We aimed to explore CRC stage at diagnosis data from population-based cancer registries in MENA countries. In 2021, we launched a Global Initiative for Cancer Registry Development (GICR) survey on staging practices and breast and CRC stage distributions in MENA. According to the survey results, population-based data on TNM stage for CRC were available from six registries in five countries (Kuwait, Morocco, Oman, Türkiye, UAE). The proportion of cases with unknown TNM stage ranged from 14% in Oman to 47% in Casablanca, Morocco. The distribution of CRC cases with known stage showed TNM stage IV proportions of 26-45%, while the proportions of stage I cancers were lowest in Morocco (≤7%), and highest (19%) in Izmir, Türkiye. Summary extent of disease data was available from six additional registries and four additional countries (Algeria, Bahrain, Iraq, Qatar). In summary, the proportions of CRC diagnosed with distant metastases in Oman, Bahrain and UAE were lower than other MENA countries in our study, but higher than in European and the US populations. Harmonising the use of staging systems and focusing stage data collection efforts on major cancers, such as CRC, is needed to monitor and evaluate progress in CRC control in the region.

Epidemiological and Histological Characteristics of Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma: A Case of the Department of Nuclear Medicine at Ibn Rochd Hospital, Casablanca, Morocco.

BACKGROUND: Thyroid carcinoma (TC) represents the most frequent type of endocrine cancers, with its incidence steadily increasing worldwide. Our study aimed to describe the epidemiological and histological characteristics of differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) at the Department of Nuclear Medicine in Ibn Rochd University Hospital, Casablanca, Morocco. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study of DTC cases treated between 2004 and 2012 in the Department of Nuclear Medicine at Ibn Rochd University Hospital. We retrospectively reviewed medical records at this department, focusing on sociodemographic characteristics, such as age, gender, geographic origin, family history of cancer, and clinical information related to tumor features, including histological type, tumor size, and multifocality. The data were statistically analyzed using the jamovi 2.3.17 software (released September 2022, the jamovi project, retrieved from https://www.jamovi.org), considering the characteristics of the variables. RESULTS: The findings revealed that 89% of the patients were females, and 78.7% were under the age of 55, ranging from 14 to 85 years. Married status represented 75.25% of our cases. Personal history of cancer and a family history of thyroid carcinoma were present in 0.9% and 1.17%, respectively. Concerning histological characteristics, the main histological type was papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) at 93%. Within these 1,283 cases, the follicular variant was the most frequent (42.89%). In addition, the tumor size was less than 2 cm in 43.80%, and it was encapsulated in 21.60%. Moreover, we staged our data according to the 8th edition of the American Joint Committee on Cancer staging system, revealing that at the time of diagnosis, 94.13% were in stage I. CONCLUSION: This study provides an overview of the epidemiological and histological characteristics of DTC in Morocco. The findings highlight the diversity and differences between clinical presentation and epidemiological profile in Moroccan patients, contributing to a better understanding of the disease and facilitating adapted management.

Parental Response to Children's Chronic Pain.

AIMS: The aim of this study was to describe the behavior of Moroccan parents toward their children's chronic pain. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in different hospital wards. Parents of hospitalized children with chronic pain aged six or over participated in the study. The parents' behavior toward their children's pain was assessed using an Arabic version of the Adult Responses to Children's Symptoms (ARCS) scale. The scores for each dimension were calculated by summing the responses of the items related to that dimension, and then they were normalized to obtain scores ranging from 0 to 100. The comparison of scores was performed using Student's t-test or ANOVA. The association between quantitative variables was assessed using a correlation coefficient. RESULTS: A total of 100 parents of children with chronic pain participated in the study. The children's average age was 10.0 ± 2.7 years. The majority of children (62%) experienced pain for more than six months. The joints were the most common location of pain (43%), followed by the abdomen (35%). The "Protect" and "Monitor" dimensions had good reliability with Cronbach's alpha coefficients of 0.80 and 0.69, respectively. The highest mean normalized scores were noted for the "Monitor" and "Protect" dimensions, with means of 82.1 and 70.8, respectively. The "Minimize" dimension had the lowest mean score of 41.4. Parental behavior was not linked to child- or pain-related characteristics. There was no difference in how mothers and fathers behaved towards their children's pain. CONCLUSION: Parents of children with chronic pain in Morocco scored higher on all dimensions of the ARCS, with the highest scores in the "protect" and "monitor" dimensions. These behaviors can negatively affect children's somatic symptoms, functional disability, and anxiety. Our study revealed the importance of providing support to both children and parents of children with chronic pain to manage the pain and related behaviors.

Association between single nucleotide polymorphisms in DNA repair genes and the efficacy of radiotherapy in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients.

Introduction: Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in DNA repair genes are mainly correlated with the response to radiotherapy in nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC). In NPC patients, previous research has studied the association between X-ray repair cross-complementing group 1 and 3 (XRCC1 and XRCC3) polymorphisms and radio-therapeutic response. The objective of our study was to test the association between XRCC1 Arg399Gln and XRCC3 Thr241Met polymorphisms and the response to radiotherapy in the NPC Moroccan population. Material and methods: A total of 100 patients with NPC were genotyped for polymorphisms in XRCC1 and XRCC3 genes. Results: The results revealed that the genotypes and alleles of both SNPs did not show any significant association with clinical stages (for XRCC1 Arg399Gln: p [genotype] = 0.559; p [allele] = 0.440) and (for XRCC3 Thr241Met: p [genotype] = 0.638; p [allele] = 0.567). Moreover, in the study of the association between the polymorphisms and radiotherapy, the response to radiation therapy between genotypes and alleles was not statistically significant (for XRCC1 Arg399Gln p [genotype] = 0.583; p [allele] = 0.459) and (for XRCC3 Thr241Met p [genotype] = 0.660; p [allele] = 0.590). Conclusions: The present study suggests that XRCC1 Arg399Gln polymorphism does not have any impact on the radio-therapeutic response in Moroccan NPC patients whereas XRCC3 Thr241Met polymorphism may act as a prognostic indicator for NPC patients treated with radiotherapy. However, studies with a larger sample are needed to confirm our results.

Women's Knowledge and Attitudes Towards Cervical Cancer Screening in Morocco.

High incidence rates of cervical cancer are still common in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) with ineffective prevention policies. This study assessed Moroccan women's knowledge and practices regarding the cervical cancer screening program. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019 in four primary healthcare centers in Casablanca. Women over the age of 18 who came to these centers during the study period were invited to participate in the study. The variables collected were related to women's knowledge of cervical cancer, the screening program, and their reasons for not participating in the screening program. The main risk factors identified by the participants were multiple sexual partners (4.3%) and sexually transmitted diseases (4%). About 77% of the cases (95% confidence interval (CI): 72.1%; 80.4%) knew that a cervical cancer screening program exists in Morocco. However, a small proportion had an idea about the population targeted by the program (46%) and the recommended interval between two screening tests (20%). Only 28% (95% CI: 19.2%; 38.2%) of eligible women had ever been screened for cervical cancer. These results underline the importance of implementing a communication strategy to increase women's awareness of the cervical screening program and their involvement in it.

Epidemiological, Clinicopathological and Prognosis Features of Moroccan Patients with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.

PROPOSAL: A distinct epidemiology, etiology, clinical characteristics, and therapeutic outcomes characterize nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) from other head and neck cancers. An actualized analysis of NPC patients' features enables a global view of NPC management. Accordingly, the current study investigated the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of Moroccan patients with NPC, as well as their 4-years survival outcomes and influencing prognostic factors. METHODS: We prospectively analyzed data of 142 histologically confirmed Moroccan patients with NPC between October 2016 and February 2019. Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses were used to assess predictive prognostic factors related to NPC. All analyses were conducted using SPSS version 21 statistical software. RESULTS: In the present study, a net male predominance was found, with a mean age of 44±16.3 years old. Advanced stages of NPC were observed in 64.1% of patients, and 32.4% of patients presented with distant metastasis at diagnosis. The 4-years overall survival, locoregional relapse-free survival, distant metastasis-free survival and progression-free survival were 68.0%, 63.0%, 53.9%, and 39.9%, respectively. Age, N category and distant metastasis were identified as the most important independent prognosis factors for NPC in this cohort (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: In conclusion, NPC affects young adults and is frequently diagnosed at advanced disease stages, impacting therefore negatively patients survival; which is in line with data from endemic areas for NPC. The current study clearly highlights that a greater attention should be directed to improving the management of this aggressive malignancy.

Genetic Polymorphisms in ERCC1 Gene and Their Association with Response to Radiotherapy in Moroccan Patients with Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a severe malignant disease. Despite its low frequency, NPC is very common in North African population. Radiotherapy is the standard therapeutic treatment of NPC. However, radioresistance hampers the success of treatment. At the molecular scale, radioresistance is due to genetic variations involved in DNA repair pathways in NPC patients. Several studies reported that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in excision repair cross complementing group 1 (ERCC1) could be associated with radioresistance. In this optic, the present study aimed to evaluate the association between DNA repair gene polymorphisms ERCC1 C8092A and ERCC1 C118T and radiotherapy response of patients with NPC. METHODS: A total of 95 patients with confirmed NPC were recruited at the Mohammed VI Center for Cancer Treatment, Casablanca - Morocco between 2016 and 2018. Two single nucleotide polymorphisms in ERCC1 gene were genotyped. Multiple analysis software was used to assess the correlation between these SNPs and radio-therapeutic response. RESULTS: Sequencing of ERCC1 C8092A polymorphism revealed that CC and CA genotypes were found in 51.6% and 45.3% of cases, respectively, whereas the homozygote AA genotype was reported in only 3.1% of cases. For ERCC1 C118T polymorphism, the heterozygote CT genotype was identified in 49.5% of cases. Homozygotes genotypes CC and TT were detected in 17.9% and 32.6% respectively of NPC cases. Of note, no significant association was found between the ERCC1 C8092A polymorphism and response to radiation therapy (p=0.81). Similarly, there was no significant association between the response to radiotherapy and allelic distribution (p=0.56). Likewise, no correlation was observed neither with genotypes (p=0.07) nor with alleles (p=0.09) of ERCC1 C118T polymorphism and response to radiation therapy. CONCLUSION: Our results clearly showed that ERCC1 C8092A and ERCC1 C118T polymorphisms were not associated with response to radiotherapy in Moroccan NPC patients. Large studies are warranted to confirm the role of these SNPs in therapeutic response of NPC patients.

Staging practices and breast cancer stage among population-based registries in the MENA region.

BACKGROUND: Availability of stage information by population-based cancer registries (PBCR) remains scarce for diverse reasons. Nevertheless, stage is critical cancer control information particularly for cancers amenable to early detection. In the framework of the Global Initiative for Cancer Registry Development (GICR), we present the status of stage data collection and dissemination among registries in the Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA) region as well as the stage distribution of breast cancer patients. METHODS: A web-based survey exploring staging practices and breast cancer stage was developed and sent to 30 PBCR in 18 countries of the MENA region. RESULTS: Among 23 respondent PBCR, 21 collected stage data, the majority (80%) for all cancers. Fourteen registries used a single classification (9 TNM and 5 SEER), 7 used both staging systems in parallel. Out of 12,888 breast cancer patients (seven registries) 27.7% had unknown TNM stage (11.1% in Oman, 46% in Annaba). When considering only cases with known stage, 65.3% were early cancers (TNM I+II), ranging from 57.9% in Oman to 83.3% in Batna (Algeria), and 9.9% were stage IV cancers. Among the nine registries providing SEER Summary stage for breast cancer cases, stage was unknown in 19% of the cases, (0 in Bahrain, 39% in Kuwait). Stage data were largely absent from the published registry reports. CONCLUSION: Despite wide stage data collection by cancer registries, missing information and low dissemination clearly limit informing efforts on early detection. The use of two classification systems in parallel implies additional workload and might undermine completeness. The favourable results of early cancer (TNM I+II) in two thirds of breast cancer patients needs to be interpreted with caution and followed up in time. Although efforts to improve quality of stage data are needed, our findings are particularly relevant to the WHO Global Breast Cancer Initiative.

Association of Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior with Colorectal Cancer Risk in Moroccan Adults: A Large-Scale, Population-Based Case-Control Study.

BACKGROUND: Physical activity has been associated with a lower risk of colorectal cancer in studies mainly conducted in high-income countries, while sedentary behavior has been suggested to increase CRC risk. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of physical activity and sedentary behavior on CRC risk in the Moroccan population. METHODS: A case-control study was conducted involving 1516 case-control pairs, matched on age, sex and center in five university hospital centers. A structured questionnaire was used to collect information on socio-demographics, lifestyle habits, family history of CRC, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) use. Information on physical activity and sedentary behavior were collected by the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ). For each activity (work, household, and recreational activities), a metabolic equivalent (MET) was calculated using GPAQ recommendations. Conditional logistic regression models were used to assess the association between physical activity, sedentary behavior and the risk of overall CRC, colon cancer, and rectal cancer taking into account other CRC risk factors. RESULTS: High level of physical activity was associated with lower risk of rectal cancer, colon cancer, and overall CRC, the adjusted odds ratios (ORa) for the highest versus the lowest level of activity were 0.67 (95% CI: 0.54-0.82), 0.77 (95% CI: 0.62-0.96), and 0.72 (95% CI: 0.62-0.83), respectively. In contrast, sedentary behavior was positively associated with rectal cancer risk (ORa=1.19, 95% CI: 1.01-1.40), but was unrelated to colon cancer risk (ORa=1.02, 95% CI: 0.87-1.20). CONCLUSION: We found an inverse association between physical activity and CRC risk in the Moroccan population, and a positive association between sedentary behavior and rectal cancer risk. Considering that one-third of the total population studied had a sedentary lifestyle, these results may be used to improve strategies of public health suitable for Moroccan population.

Evolution of patterns of care for women with cervical cancer in Morocco over a decade.

BACKGROUND: We conducted a Pattern-of-care (POC) study at two premier-most public-funded oncology centers in Morocco to evaluate delays in care continuum and adherence to internationally accepted treatment guidelines of cervical cancer. METHOD: Following a systematic sampling method, cervical cancer patients registered at Centre Mohammed VI (Casablanca) and Institut National d'Oncologie (Rabat) during 2 months of every year from 2008 to 2017, were included in this retrospective study. Relevant information was abstracted from the medical records. RESULTS: A total of 886 patients was included in the analysis; 59.5% were at stage I/II. No appreciable change in stage distribution was observed over time. Median access and treatment delays were 5.0 months and 2.3 months, respectively without any significant temporal change. Concurrent chemotherapy was administered to 57.7% of the patients receiving radiotherapy. Surgery was performed on 81.2 and 34.8% of stage I and II patients, respectively. A very high proportion (85.7%) of operated patients received post-operative radiation therapy. Median interval between surgery and initiation of radiotherapy was 3.1 months. Only 45.3% of the patients treated with external beam radiation received brachytherapy. Radiotherapy was completed within 10 weeks in 77.4% patients. An overall 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) was observed in 57.5% of the patients - ranging from 66.1% for stage I to 31.1% for stage IV. Addition of brachytherapy to radiation significantly improved survival at all stages. The study has the usual limitations of retrospective record-based studies, which is data incompleteness. CONCLUSION: Delays in care continuum need to be further reduced. Increased use of chemoradiation and brachytherapy will improve survival further.

The Dynamic Change in Plasma Epstein-Barr Virus DNA Load over a Long-Term Follow-Up Period Predicts Prognosis in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.

The current study was designed to investigate the changes in the circulating Epstein−Barr virus DNA load (EBV DNA) at various time points before and after treatment and its clinical significance in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). A total of 142 patients with NPC were prospectively enrolled in this study. The plasma EBV DNA concentration was measured before and after treatment using qPCR. The prognostic values of the EBV DNA load were analyzed using the Kaplan−Meier and Cox regression tests. Following multivariate analysis, our data showed that high pre-EBV DNA loads were associated with significantly poorer distant metastasis free survival (DMFS) and progression free survival (PFS); detectable end-EBV DNA loads were associated with significantly worse loco-regional recurrence free survival (LRRFS) and PFS, and the detecTable 6 months-post-EBV DNA loads were associated with significantly poorer overall survival (OS), DMFS and PFS (p < 0.05). Additionally, combining the pre-EBV DNA load and the stage of the disease, our results showed that patients at stage III-IVA with a low pre-EBV DNA load had similar survival rates as patients at stage II with a low or high pre-EBV DNA load, but had better survival rates than those at stage III-IVA with a high pre-EBV DNA load. Taken together, we showed that the change of the EBV DNA load measured at several time points was more valuable than at any single time point for predicting patients' survival for NPC. Furthermore, combining the pre-EBV DNA load and the TNM classification could help to formulate an improved prognostic model for this cancer.

Patterns of care of breast cancer patients in Morocco - A study of variations in patient profile, tumour characteristics and standard of care over a decade.

Guided by a national cancer plan (2010-19), Morocco made significant investments in improving breast cancer detection and treatment. A breast cancer pattern-of-care study was conducted to document the socio-demographic profiles of patients and tumour characteristics, measure delays in care, and assess the status of dissemination and impact of state-of-the-art management. The retrospective study conducted among 2120 breast cancer patients registered during 2008-17 at the two premier-most oncology centres (Centre Mohammed VI or CM-VI and Institut National d'Oncologie or INO) also measured temporal trends of the different variables. Median age (49 years) and other socio-demographic characteristics of the patients remained constant over time. A significant improvement in coverage of the state-financed health insurance scheme for indigent populations was observed over time. Median interval between onset of symptoms and first medical consultation was 6 months with a significant reduction over time. Information on staging and molecular profile were available for more than 90% and 80% of the patients respectively. Approximately 55% of the patients presented at stage I/II and proportion of triple-negative cancers was 16%; neither showing any appreciable temporal variation. Treatment information was available for more than 90% of the patients; 69% received surgery with chemotherapy and/or radiation. Treatment was tailored to stage and molecular profiles, though breast conservation therapy was offered to less than one-fifth. When compared using the EUSOMA quality indicators for breast cancer management, INO performed better than CM-VI. This was reflected in nearly 25% difference in 5-year disease-free survival for early-stage cancers between the centres.

The Past, Present, and Future of Professional Cancer Education in Morocco.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in Morocco after cardiovascular diseases. Changes associated with societal and economic development, longevity of the population, and lifestyle changes contribute to increasing the burden of cancer in the Morocco. Despite the advances and achievements in cancer care in Morocco, more efforts are needed to better treat, control, and prevent cancer in Morocco. This manuscript illustrates the professional cancer education activities in Morocco over the past 10 years. The manuscript also illustrates the current cancer education and the needed future directions in the field in this middle-income country that is undergoing significant epidemiologic and lifestyle transitions and projections for increasing cancer incidence and mortality in the next few decades.

Circulating cell-free epstein-barr virus DNA levels and clinical features in Moroccan patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: The identification of effective prognosis biomarkers for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is crucial to improve treatment and patient outcomes. In the present study, we have attempted to evaluate the correlation between pre-treatment plasmatic Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA load and the conventional prognostic factors in Moroccan patients with NPC. METHODS: The present study was conducted on 121 histologically confirmed NPC patients, recruited from January 2017 to December 2018. Circulating levels of EBV DNA were measured before therapy initiation using real-time quantitative PCR. RESULTS: Overall, undifferentiated non-keratinizingcarcinoma type was the most common histological type (90.1 %), and 61.8 % of patients were diagnosed at an advanced disease stage (IV). Results of pre-treatment plasma EBV load showed that 90.9 % of patients had detectable EBV DNA, with a median plasmatic viral load of 7710 IU/ml. The correlation between pre-treatment EBV DNA load and the conventional prognostic factors showed a significant association with patients' age (p = 0.01), tumor classification (p = 0.01), lymph node status (p = 0.003), metastasis status (p = 0.00) and overall cancer stage (p = 0.01). Unexpectedly, a significant higher level of pre-treatment EBV DNA was also found in plasma of NPC patients with a family history of cancer (p = 0.04). The risk of NPC mortality in patients with high pretreatment EBVDNA levels was significantly higher than that of those with low pre-treatment plasma EBV-DNA levels (p < 0.05). Furthermore, patients with high pre-treatment EBV-DNA levels (≥ 2000, ≥ 4000) had a significant low overall survival (OS) rates (p < 0.05). Interestingly, lymph node involvement, metastasis status and OS were found to be the most important factors influencing the EBV DNA load in NPC patients. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the present study clearly showed a high association between pre-treatment EBV DNA load, the crucial classical prognostic factors (T, N, M and disease stage) of NPC and OS, suggesting that pre-treatment EBV DNA can be a useful prognostic biomarker in clinical decision-making and improving NPC treatment in Morocco.

[A case-control study on dietary risk factors for colorectal cancer in Morocco]. / Facteurs de risque alimentaires du cancer colorectal au Maroc: étude cas témoin.

INTRODUCTION: given its frequency and severity, colorectal cancer is a major public health problem. Diet plays a key role in preventing this type of cancer. The purpose of our study was to determine dietary risk factors for colorectal cancer in our Moroccan context. METHODS: we conducted a case-control study including patients with colorectal cancer compared with controls. The statistical analysis of results was carried out using R software. RESULTS: our study included 225 patients treated for cancer at the Mohammed VI Hospital Center and 225 controls. The average age of our study population at the time of diagnosis was 55.49±14.06 years, including 119 men (52.9%) and 106 women (47.1%) with a sex ratio of 1.12. Associations were found between the highest intakes of red meats, cold meats, sausages and the risk of colorectal cancer (p = 0.0001) with F4 (4-7 times / week) vs F1 (never): OR = 4.4 (1.6-11.9); (p = 0.001), OR = 1.7 (0.5-5.7); (p = 0.003), OR = 5.7 (1.2-27.4)). On the other hand, consumption of fish was associated with a reduced risk of colorectal cancer (p = 0.0001; OR = 0.3 (0.11-0.7)), while consumption of poultry and grilled eggs was not associated with colorectal cancer. We also found that consumption of fresh vegetables and cooked vegetables was low in patients compared to controls (p = 0.0001). Furthermore, a high intake of black coffee was associated with a reduced risk of colorectal cancer (p = 0.0001; F4 vs F1: OR = 0.2 (0.1-0.4)). CONCLUSION: our study highlights that dietary changes can prevent or impede the growth of colorectal cancer. It is essential to promote balanced diet, rich in fish, vegetables, fruits and fibers without exceeding recommended levels of red meat and avoiding cold meats and sausages.